Personality Quiz
by Cassie821
Summary: When a group of friends decide to take a personality quiz that doubles as a dating service, things get very interesting for the friends who are clearly NOT interested! SasuNaru.
1. Taking The Quiz

Disclaimer: Naruto unfortunately is not mine but rather the exclusive creation of Masashi Kishimoto.

Summary: When a group of friends decide to take a personality quiz that doubles as a dating service, things get very interesting for the friends who are clearly NOT interested! SasuNaru; NejiGaara and others.

Beta'd by me, myself and I.

Author's Note: I was actually thinking about my results from the semeuke test when the idea for this fic came to me. Very weird I know, but hopefully you all will like this story. I initially thought it was going to be a one-shot but after starting it; I changed my mind and decided that it was going to be a multi-chapter fic. So here is another multi-chapter fic. I really should come up with a one-shot sometime soon though. Lol.

**XXX**

"So from all I have said, it can be concluded that the French revolution occurred primarily because of the vast difference between the haves and the have-nots of the French society. This difference was made worse by the treatment the nobility doled out to the members of the lower class or the proletariat and the insensitivity of the crown to the plight of the people; case in point being the insensitive words of Marie Antoinette to the serfs telling them to eat cake if they cannot afford to eat bread. Now, as for the writers like Voltaire..."

Naruto zoned off at this point as Iruka Sensei continued to drone on about the French revolution. As far as he was concerned, he had no business with something that had happened centuries ago. Besides, if he had lived in France at that time, he probably would have been killed or something, After all, it's not like he was poor or anything. Nobody that attended the University of Konoha could be as poor as the French serfs. If they were as poor as the serfs, then they could certainly not afford the tuition fees of the university. That did not include accommodation fees, expenses incurred when purchasing textbooks, money spent on feeding and day to day living, etc. So, why were they learning about this useless revolution again? Oh yes; Iruka Sensei was merely doing his job and it was History 314 after all. No one could blame the man.

Naruto turned to his right and marvelled at Shikamaru and how he could sleep so effortlessly everyday in class. Shikamaru always got away with sleeping all the time, while he always got scolded just for closing his eyes in class. Who cared that Shikamaru had a super high IQ? Also, who cared that Iruka Sensei was a close friend of the family? Naruto felt that he should be able to sleep if he wanted to. Why Shikamaru should be left to do as he liked while Naruto could not enjoy the same privileges just because he was not as smart as the genius baffled the blonde. Also, why was Iruka Sensei acting like he was his baby-sitter? What the hell was the whole point of being an adult in a university if he was not allowed to do what he damn well pleased?

To his left luckily for him were windows that showed the beautiful orchard that the school authorities had planted to beautify the school. The leaves were turning a brilliant orange and were falling gently to the ground. The koi pond that was just by the entrance to the orchard sparkled brilliantly in the sun while baby birds with their cute faces were peeking from behind the leaves and chirping happily; everything added a serene feel to the environment. Naruto inhaled deeply and took in the fragrance that was fall, his favourite season of the year.

With a discreet glance, Naruto stared at his wristwatch and was relieved to discover that there was only about two minutes left before the end of the class. Knowing Iruka Sensei's routine well, and aware that he would probably be telling the students something important at the moment, Naruto paid attention to the rest of the lecture.

"So for your assignment, which is to be submitted on Friday, I want you all to write an essay explaining your beliefs about the French revolution and what could have been done to prevent it. I want you to draw conclusions between the revolution and any other revolution that might have happened in another part of the world. Also, link your findings to the present day and see if instances of what happened in France before the revolution are happening in Konoha today. Do not forget to use your notes and give some background information about the revolution. This assignment will constitute forty percent of your final grade so my advice for you all is that you should take your time with it and do it well. Class is dismissed".

With a sigh, Naruto stuffed his note in his backpack and walked slowly out of the class; his mind already spinning about how he would work on the assignment.

An arm slung over his shoulder and a snort indicated that Kiba had joined him.

"Seriously man, you need to lighten up. Looking like this, people will assume that maybe your pet died or something".

"I'm just thinking about the assignment Iruka sensei gave us in history class. It is going to take a long time to work on it and it will not be so easy to do. Also, I don't know what angle I should approach the essay from that will make it somewhat unique".

"The assignment is troublesome Naruto. I don't know why you're getting worked up over it. Just push it to the back of your mind. When the time is right, inspiration will come and you will do it well."

"The only thing you know is to complain that everything is troublesome Shikamaru. Yet at the end of the day, your assignment will end up being one of the best if not the best in class. Listening to you about this is bad advice unless I'm aiming to score fail the assignment", Naruto grumbled with his arms crossed and his face squeezed into an expression of dissatisfaction.

While they walked, the final addition to their group; a red-haired boy who was quiet most of the time nodded to Naruto and continued walking with them.

"Gaara, I learnt that Kankurou is receiving an award for his creation of a robot prototype that can carry out chores, shop and defend a family. I wish I had something like that. It will be so convenient for me. Better yet, I wish I had a robot that could work on my assignments for me". With those words, Naruto's face that had initially brightened at the thought of the amazing robot went back to being gloomy.

"I can talk to Kankurou and ask him if he can create the robot that can help you with your chores; but for your assignment, you are going to have to handle that on your own" Gaara retorted in a soft voice, smiling slightly at his friend's stumped look.

"Come on Naruto" Kiba stated as he pulled the blonde, "Let's go to Ichiraku's so I can treat you to some ramen".

"Yay for ramen. I want some ramen" and with those words, Naruto hurried along already dreaming and muttering about the wonders of ramen.

With a laugh, his friends followed behind him, each of them happy at the fact that it took very little to make Naruto happy.

**XXX**

With his mind partially divided, Sasuke paid attention to Kakashi Sensei and checked his e-mail at the same time. He was expecting a message from Itachi that was to contain the yearly report for the company they both owned major shares in: Akatsuki Corporation.

Akatsuki Corp dabbled in everything; from manufacturing to construction to even a clothing line. Investing in the business had definitely been a good idea and Sasuke even though he knew he would never admit it to his brother; was quite happy that he had listened to Itachi when he suggested that they should invest part of the money the inherited from their dead parents in the then new corporation. It was a risk that they both took and it had most certainly paid off after all.

After scrolling down the list of junk mail, Sasuke spotted the much anticipated e-mail with the title: Yearly Report. He opened it and the figures he saw made him smile.

_It has definitely been a good year for Akatsuki Corporation and my bank account. I am richer than I was last year and if this trend continues, I will only get richer as the years progress. Hmm; I think it's time for me to talk with Itachi about his suggestion that we should invest in Konoha Railway Company. That might be another wise business decision._

With that thought in his mind, Sasuke hurriedly composed a message to his brother; asking him to set a day for them to meet and talk about their investments.

After sending the message, Sasuke looked up and made some more jottings. Kakashi was talking about marketing strategies and their relevance to the success of the marketing process. Sasuke made some notes about different marketing strategies that Akatsuki Corp had made and how the strategies had helped to increase the profit margin of the company. He also made some notes about the troubles that the company had run into with some of the strategies and how the marketing mix had been tweaked slightly to make everything work more smoothly.

After making the notes, Sasuke raised his head and looked at Neji who was sitting right in front of him and Temari who was sitting right beside him. The three of them were close friends and in some cases tended to think alike.

Temari was wearing a black fitted shirt and black Capri pants. She had on a red belt that sat snugly above her hips with red five inch heels on her feet. Her hair was bound in two simple ponytails that were that way so that she will be able to work without the hair strands disturbing her rather than for fashion. She looked effective and very serious and had the look of a woman who knew her own mind and what she wanted and would get it no matter what; an attitude that she developed because she was the oldest of three children and she had always had a take-charge attitude since she was a child.

Temari was busy with her i-Pad and she made notes on it as well as in her spiral notebook. She carried out both actions with a look of such intense concentration that would have made a smaller man look away or would terrified a lesser being. Sasuke merely smirked and turned his attention to his other friend: Neji.

Sasuke observed the pale eyed man who was studiously taking notes while simultaneously going through his palm pilot; obviously trying to organize the rest of his day. Sasuke laughed internally as he considered that the person who believed that only women could multitask efficiently had obviously not met him and his friends because they could have certainly given the individual a run for his money.

Neji unaware of the scrutiny his friend was giving him continued to work on his notes and his planner. Unknown to most people, Neji was the poster boy for the group of people who believed in working hard and playing harder. Because of this, most people who were not his friends saw him as either the serious student who took notes copiously in class and worked his ass off at the family business, or the party whore who could party harder than anyone else at the school. Outsiders were also not aware of the fact that Neji was very adept at manipulating people and events to reach his goal. So, if the situation called for him to be serious, then he would be serious, and if the situation called for him to be playful then no one could party as well as Neji. The Hyuuga heir had mastered the art of being able to enjoy and utilize both sides of his personality and this ability served him well in school, the real world and the corporate world.

It was therefore no wonder that both he and Sasuke were at the top of the class at Konoha Business School. It definitely explained the reason for the closeness of their bond as they were both similar in their dispositions, heirs to companies worth billions and had the desire to be the best and to be leaders in the corporate world. Going to business school was therefore a step in the right direction for the two of them and they definitely intended to take complete advantage of that opportunity. Temari was already running Sabaku Industries with her siblings and was clearly at the top already. All she wanted to do was to solidify her position.

A ping alerted Sasuke to the message in his inbox and as he silently noted that it was time for the class to end, he saw that Itachi had asked him to come to the penthouse on the weekend.

"Well, for your assignment, I want you all you all to form a group with three members each and each group must come up with a marketing strategy for our case study company Pakkun Enterprises who are makers of custom shoes. Do make sure that you consider all the factors necessary for an effective marketing strategy. Presentation will take place two months from now and I will determine later what percentage of your final grade your assignment will be".

It had been ten minutes since Kakashi had left and the students were busy discussing about their assignments and trying to sort themselves into groups. Of course Sasuke, Neji and Temari had decided unanimously to be in the same group and they were all at the back of the class trying to decide how they were going to work on the assignment.

"Well, the first order of business should be where we are going to meet because meeting in the classroom is not a plan to be considered" Sasuke stated as he stared at his two friends.

"Well, Neji's apartment is out because of the renovations being carried out in his building. Also, your apartment is out Sasuke because you have not really finished unpacking and I do not intend to spend our study sessions sitting on floral mats while pretending that I am living in the middle of a jungle somewhere. That leaves my apartment. I will of course provide food for our first meeting but subsequent meetings after that will have each of us rotating the food duty".

"Well that is okay with me. How about we meet at your house tonight at eight Temari, to discuss the assignment and how we will go about it" Sasuke suggested.

With a nod, the three friends departed with their plans to meet later in the evening pushed temporarily to the back of their minds as the hurried along to go to their next lecture for the day.

**XXX**

They were all gathered at Kiba's place because his mother agreed to cook dinner for them all. Naruto was thrilled because other than eating out at Ichiraku's place, he also loved eating at Kiba's place because his mother made the most amazing Cottage Pie ever made. Naruto and his friends were currently digging in with relish as they laughingly discussed about their day.

The entire house was filled with laughter and fun as everyone indulged in good wine, good food and good company. To Naruto's delight, even Akamaru, Kiba's puppy joined in the festivities as he ate portions out of everyone's pie, with happy yips indicating that he was quite thrilled at the state of things.

They finished their meal and the group of friends engaged in a friendly game of monopoly for a while. Naruto at this point discovered that he was not cut out to be in the real estate business and was not surprised that by the time they were rounding off the game, Shikamaru owned a large portion of the posh locations while Gaara owned the railroads and the amenities. Kiba was merely grumbling at his bad luck at playing the game and his sister just laughed at his lack of business acumen.

After the game, the four friends all retired to Kiba's room where they were all going to spend the night. None of them was feeling sleepy at all so Kiba decided that it was the perfect time to mention his sister's suggestion to his friends.

"So, have you all heard about this really cool website where you can take the most accurate personality quiz ever? The questions are funny and are asked in such a way that you have fun while taking the quiz. Also, I learnt that the results are so true that even the people that take it are amazed about how accurate the results are. The results state everything about your personality and your personal quirks and goals and tell you the personality type that will best match yours for a romantic pairing."

"So? It sounds like every other personality quiz out there Kiba. What makes this any different?" Naruto asked while staring at his friend who was totally giddy with excitement.

"Well, after you have taken the test, the website matches you with a member who would be the perfect match for you" Kiba squealed.

"So, why should we use a website to get dates? We are not so lame that we can't get dates on our own. So why should we consider an internet hook-up?" Gaara asked while staring in confusion at Kiba.

"The website merely helps us to narrow down those we can date. Besides it's not like we are forced to date the person we are matched with. We can just take the test and see our results and get to know the person that we are told is most compatible with us based on the results. We might even decide not to meet our compatible matches and we won't be penalized for it. Just consider it a fun game and let's all take the test. It won't hurt us anyway".

"Well okay then. It sounds like something fun to do and if your sister likes it then I'm sure she must have heard about some pretty hilarious results" Naruto stated while laughing hard at the thought of Kiba's sister receiving a result telling her that she would like spanking or something weird like that.

"I think it's troublesome that I'm friends with you lot. If I wasn't, then I won't be taking this troublesome test".

In unity, the four friends pulled out their laptops from their bags and switched it on. After connecting to the internet, they all logged in the web address for the personality quiz website which Kiba had gotten from his sister.

In one accord, they took the test. Gaara and Shikamaru took their time with answering the questions while Kiba and Naruto rushed through the questions like they were being chased by the hounds of hell. They only slowed down for some questions that were particularly kinky especially the ones that asked if they preferred lions or wolves and if they preferred to be spanked or to be the one carrying out the spanking. Naruto was of course very confused as he wondered what the two obviously different questions had in common and how they would be used to determine his personality. However, he shrugged and answered the questions the best way he could and continued answering the others.

Ten minutes later, the four friends were done with the quiz and spent about two minutes filling in their details and their e-mail addresses so that the website could send their results to the given addresses after the result had been compiled. According to the information they could see on the website, their results were to be ready after a week so as to ensure that they were given the most accurate information.

The four boys all looked at one another after they were done and merely nodded to indicate that they were done. They then proceeded to work a bit on their various assignments, while secretly wondering about what their results would be and who they would be paired up with when their results are sent to them.

**XXX**

"So, it has been decided. Neji, you will go to Pakkun Enterprises and find out what the company is about. I want us to know everything about the company; from its products, to its target market, to its budget for the strategy and its mission statement. I want us to be the group that has the most knowledge about the company and we will therefore be the ones that have the best presentation in the class. Temari, your job will be to visit the library to find out any external information about Pakkun enterprises and what they produce. I want the littlest details including information about how their products have been faring and if the company has ever had any problems with bad sales etcetera. I on the other hand will work on finding out all I can about Pakkun's major competitors and what their marketing strategies are and how effective these strategies have been for them. That way we will be able to design a marketing strategy that will not only help the company but will be able to do so without making some of the mistakes that the competitors of Pakkun Enterprises made when they were working on theirs. They obviously did something right and I want us to utilize it. All is fair in love, war and corporate domination".

"Wow. Now you've turned a simple assignment into one of your quests for global domination. Why am I not surprised Sasuke?" Temari asked with a smile as she continued to make notes about her own assigned role in the assignment.

"It's simple Temari. If this assignment goes well, not only will we get the best grades in the class, but we will help a failing company to get back on its feet and the experience we will gain will prove useful to us when we are working at our own companies" Neji answered without even giving Sasuke an opportunity to respond.

"Neji is right Temari. Besides if all goes well, I will suggest that we should invest a bit in the company. When it grows to be a major competitor in the creation of custom shoes for its consumers all over the world, we will reap the benefits".

"Well then, we are done with our assignment for today. I made us a simple meal of Potato and Broccoli Stir-fry; it is Wednesday after all and you both know that I eat my vegetables on Wednesdays only, and besides the meal is easy to cook and is not time consuming which suits me perfectly." Temari stated with a smile. "I have a bottle of red Bordeaux chilling in the fridge that will go splendidly well with the dish. So, Neji get some glasses from the cabinets. Sasuke, you can get the wine from the fridge while I will get our meal from the kitchen".

The three friends all retired to Temari's living room after they were done with the meal. Each of them had a glass of wine in one hand and held their phones with the other hand. For thirty minutes, they only sounds that broke the silence were the typing sounds and the sounds of them breathing.

Temari waited until things had quieted a bit before speaking to her friends. "An acquaintance of mine named Matsuri recently created a website that offers a personality quiz that doubles as a dating service. She has been trying to get me to invest in the business but I've held off because I want to test it out before committing to it".

"So, why are you informing us about this Temari?" Neji asked as he looked at Temari with confused eyes.

"Well, I want you both to also consider it as an investment option. It will not cost us much money. Also, Matsuri mentioned that it is free to join the website as members which will mean that more people will be willing to join since they are not paying anything to join the site. The money that will run the website will come from the investors and they will make their profits from the ads that will be run on the website. Also, the website will be able to match the members with their potential partners and also give them advice about products to use. So, for example if you agree to invest in the website Sasuke, then when the site is recommending theatres and restaurants that the newly matched couple can visit for their dates, then they will recommend Uchiha Corporation which specialises in that aspect of the service industry. Also, if the members want to make plans to travel to foreign locations or stay in hotels, then the Hyuuga Corporation will be recommended because the company owns several travel agencies and hotels around the world. It is a sound investment if it pulls through and like I said earlier, it will cost us very little".

"If it is so sound and will cost very little, then why do you want to test drive the personality quiz before investing in the website" Sasuke asked.

"Matsuri claims that the personality quiz is fun and accurate and I want to confirm it. You know me very well Sasuke. I won't invest my money in any business venture until I'm completely certain that it will pay off at the end of the day. The selling point for Matsuri is the accurateness of the quiz and I want to confirm that. According to the data she presented to me, the members of the website since its creation about six months ago have increased to about six hundred thousand people all over the world, and so far, about seventy-five percent of that number has been matched. I want to confirm for myself if that is true. I can't think of a better way to confirm this than for us three to take the test and see what the quiz is about from the eyes of the members and see how we are all going to make our money".

"Hmm. Well I think it's worth considering. Besides, it's not like we are making our investments immediately. Let's see what this quiz has to offer us and we will take it from there. So, what is the website Temari?" Sasuke asked while staring at the mural of the birth of Dionysus which Temari had on the wall of her living room.

"It's quiz to date dot com."

In unison, the three friends all turned to their i-Pads and logged into the website. Another long silence descended on the room as they all concentrated on taking the quiz. After answering the question and filling in their details, Neji broke the silence by addressing Temari, "your acquaintance was right. The test was easy to answer and fun too."

"Well, I guess we should call it a night. It's getting late and we do have classes tomorrow" Sasuke stated while stretching his lean frame. "Thank you for the meal, the wine and the conversation Temari. Our next meeting will be held in my house and hopefully by then, we will have accomplished much in terms of both our assignment and the website and I would have finished unpacking my things."

As the three friends all lay in their beds that night, they all wondered what the week after would bring and if truly they could meet their soul-mates through a website.

**XXX**

A/N: So, that's the beginning of another story. Reviews make me happy and encourage me to write faster. So read and review. Thank you.


	2. The Results

Disclaimer: Naruto unfortunately is not mine but rather the exclusive creation of Masashi Kishimoto.

Summary: When a group of friends decide to take a personality quiz that doubles as a dating service, things get very interesting for the friends who are clearly NOT interested! SasuNaru; NejiGaara and others.

Beta'd by me, myself and I.

Author's Note: I actually had a lot of fun writing this chapter. Well, happy holidays to you all and I hope you all have a kick-ass 2012. Also, to everyone who reviewed, I will like to say thank you very much and I do hope you all enjoy this chapter as well.

Also, I will like to state that although the primary pairing is SasuNaru and a substantial portion of the narrative will be from their perspective, there will be times when I will briefly narrate the story from the perspective of other characters. These breaks will not be long and it is all to make the story more interesting so do bear with me.

**XXX**

The air was still very cool as the sun had not yet decided to make its appearance for the day. The only illumination came from the street lights that were scattered all over the place and gave a bluish tint to the dark hair of the solitary jogger whose sneakered feet were pounding the streets with a beat that only fellow joggers could understand.

Sasuke sucked in a deep breath and exhaled slowly as he continued with his jogging routine. His fists were pumping in tandem with his feet and were giving him added strength. His earphones were plugged into his ears and his iPod was playing the song Hopeless by Breaking Benjamin.

It was going to be a beautiful day; Sasuke could sense it. The air smelt clean, his body was moving with good health, and he could feel the slow burn that indicated to him that he was getting a very good workout; a glance at his wristwatch confirmed that his hour was almost up.

To Sasuke, the best way to start the day was to go for an early morning jog with his favourite music playing before the sun rose, then get back home, take a cold shower, read the morning paper and have breakfast. Any day that starts with the calming influence of a jog, good music, a rejuvenating shower, information about how the rest of the world was doing and a filling breakfast was definitely going to be a good day.

The beeping sound of his timer indicated that he had spent enough time jogging and Sasuke turned around and with a slow trot, headed back home. After stretching adequately, he pulled off his jogging shoes, took off his clothes and walked into the shower. The feel of the cold water sliding through his hair and down his body was cooling and it felt like all his aches were being washed away.

After several minutes, Sasuke stepped out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist and a small one that he used to dry his hair. After he was done, he pulled on his black briefs and a pair of black pants. A green top and a black jacket were added to the ensemble and to complete the look, a pair of black suede shoes.

With his hands stretched out in front of him, he snagged the newspaper he had left on his bed and moved to the kitchen where he made himself some tomato and basil soup. As he drank the soup and munched on some bread, Sasuke looked at his apartment. He had finally finished unpacking the day before and now had a view of the place that was not obstructed by his boxes. The apartment was big and spacious and had been painted in different shades of green. The interior decorator had obviously had a weird fascination with aliens and seaweed because Sasuke could not understand why anyone would want to paint an entire apartment in the colour green. He of course conveniently ignored the voice that mentioned that if there was something wrong with the decorator who painted the apartment green, then there was something wrong with the person who accepted that the apartment was okay and purchased it, green colour and all. Sasuke of course was convinced that he only saw the apartment in the dark and he was blindfolded when the realtors showed him the apartment in the day. That was his story and he was sticking to it!

He had a view of Konoha Central Park and he could see the kids in the swings and the adults who were just lying around chatting, staring at their kids or just having a great time being out in the sun. His floor length windows gave the room an airy feel and made the view of the park and the ocean that was further out seem even more intense and breathtaking.

Everything in the apartment had its proper place and stayed there. Sasuke did not like searching for where he had kept his shoes the day before (they were always on the shoe rack in his bedroom), where his plates, bowls, pans, and cutleries were (they were in the cabinets sorted out by type) and where his books and DVDs were (they had their own shelves and were arranged alphabetically). He did not like stress and he sought to ensure that things always remained stress-free for him.

It was because of this that he rinsed his bowl quickly after he was done with his breakfast, grabbed his keys and hurried out of the house. He had a class in thirty minutes and he could not afford to be late. That would just be stressful for him.

**XXX**

"Our winner of the title of the ultimate ramen eater and fan for the year is Mr Uzumaki Naruto; and as promised, Mr Uzumaki will be given a full year's delivery of ramen free of charge. Will he please rise so that we can give him his prize?"

Naruto smiled as he walked up to the podium, and just as he stretched out his hands to collect the gift card of free ramen for a year, a shrill sound could suddenly be heard all over the auditorium.

_What is that annoying sound that is disturbing the peace of this place? It's so loud. Anyway, it shouldn't be able to stop me from collecting my prize. Wait a minute, what is happening to the auditorium? It's getting very dim and everyone seems to be fading. No, please come back, give me my gift. I want my ramen!_

With a start Naruto woke up from his dream with the shrill noise from his cell phone the only thing that could be heard in the room.

His tired brain was still trying to boot as he sluggishly picked his phone from his bedside table while glancing tiredly at the table clock he had placed right beside his bed. The time glowed 2:12 am and Naruto grumbled as he wondered who the hell could be calling him that early in the day.

The only sounds he could hear from the telephone were breathing as his early morning caller decided not to talk to him yet. It did not take him long to figure out who his mute caller was and he spoke accordingly-

"Gaara; I know you don't need to sleep for long like us normal people do but could you please tell me why you decided to call me this early so that I can go back to sleep".

"It's Friday, Naruto".

"And the reason why you called to inform me about the day of the week like I didn't already know is because?"

"You have to submit Iruka's Sensei's assignment in his class this morning, and you still have not finished your final draft yet".

"Shit. I totally forgot. Thanks for the heads-up Gaara. I will start working on it now".

"You're welcome. I will see you later in class today".

With that, Gaara hung up the phone and Naruto dug out his laptop as he started editing his work, already mentally calculating how long it would take him and realizing the fact that he would have to hurry if he wanted to make it in time for his morning class.

The day was going to be a very busy one; and it did not start as well as Naruto would have liked. But at least, he would have his assignment ready before the class started.

**XXX**

Itachi greeted Sasuke at the door with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. With the air of quiet satisfaction that seemed to be rolling off his brother in waves and the sounds that were coming from the bedroom, Sasuke remembered the reason why he had moved out of the penthouse in the first place. Itachi and his boyfriend of four months were complete sex monkeys and did nothing but have sex in every room and every corner of the apartment and from the satisfied smirk on his brother's usually emotionless face, Sasuke concluded that they had just finished doing it. He considered it a thing of mercy that he had not come earlier because he remembered that Itachi was always extra cranky if he was interrupted from getting laid.

"Well well, someone looks pretty satisfied" Sasuke commented while smirking at his brother. He had of course forgotten that Itachi was the king of repartees and his brother did not disappoint.

"Of course I'm satisfied little brother. I have a man who gives the best head, has the tightest ass and literarily brightens up my day. You on the other hand have no one. You don't even have a pet to keep you company. Not to mention the fact that your apartment is a mess that is painted in weird shades of green".

"There is no way I am jealous of your relationship with Deidara Itachi. Have you seen your boyfriend? It's like he is always full of constant energy and believes that everything must be blown up to be better appreciated. Also, I cannot stand pets because they are dependent and my apartment is fine the way it is. I don't have all day to have this conversation with you. I just came so that we can talk about the possible investment in the Konoha Railroad Company which you suggested".

Itachi stared for a little while at his younger brother while he mentally considered if he should continue torturing him. He however decided that Sasuke was right and it was not the right time to continue with the teasing.

For the next half hour, Sasuke and Itachi talked about investing in the railroad company in the quiet of the sitting room. They weighed the pros and cons of investing in the company and also considered the exact amount they were going to invest.

After making their decisions, Sasuke spoke about Temari's business suggestion. "So, Temari has an acquaintance that has created a website that gives personality quizzes and also hooks up the members based on the results of the personality quiz. It sounds like a good idea and Temari has suggested that herself, myself and Neji should take the test as a sort of test drive to see if the quiz is really as effective as it is claimed and if the website actually holds sufficient appeal for its members".

"Okay. So what is the web address"?

"It's quiz to date dot com".

"The personality quiz is effective and you are matched with someone you are compatible with; although I do understand why you three want to try it out first".

"Yes. I'm glad that you agree. I think it's a good idea- wait a minute. What do you mean by the quiz is effective and you are matched with someone that is compatible? How can you speak with such confidence Itachi"?

"It's quite simple Sasuke. Where do you think I met Deidara? I took the test and was matched with him and I have not regretted the match at all".

_Wait a minute. Deidara? Deidara? Did Itachi just say that the website matched him up with Deidara? Hell No. This is bad. This is very bad. Most people say that Itachi and I are a lot alike. If we are so much alike, then our personality should be similar, and if our personality is similar, then our matches should be similar. Hell No. There is no way I am going to date a blonde haired blue eyed Deidara act alike. With that boundless energy, refusal to stick with the status quo, disrespect for personal space, extremely mischievous attitude and constant need to blow things up, there is no way I am going to date anybody like Deidara. He might work for Itachi, but he can never work for me._

"Sasuke, you can stop staring into space like you're about to have a seizure, and wipe that horrified look off your face this instant".

"Hey Itachi, how about I make us lunch today. I was thinking of experimenting with the grills and a flame thrower" Deidara said in a singsong as he moved to the balcony.

Twin pair of eyes widened in panic and with one voice, both brothers immediately yelled "Hell no Deidara".

**XXX**

If there was anything that Naruto knew, it was that sometimes he really came up with dumb ideas. For example, what the hell was he thinking when he asked Gaara to tell Kankurou to make him a robot. The robot had arrived the day before and it had gone out of its way to make Naruto's life miserable. Naruto could definitely feel it in his bones that the bastard robot was mocking him.

When he had received it from Gaara, he had taken the robot into his house, decided to call it robo guy and had instructed it to clean the house. Then he went out to get himself some ramen to eat. By the time he got back to his apartment, everything looked meticulously clean.

The problems began when he decided to eat his ramen for his supper. He couldn't find his dishes anywhere, the stupid robot had placed them somewhere he couldn't locate them. Nothing was where it was meant to be. Not his dishes, his cutleries or even the shoes he had left by the carpet.

He spent a frustrating hour trying to find his stuff and still couldn't find anything. He had to eat his ramen from the paper bag it was served in and he also discovered that it was a very bad idea to attempt to eat ramen from a paper bag without any cutleries. The person doing so would just end up looking really stupid with all the sauce dripping down his face.

It was when he was done and had moved to the kitchen that it occurred to him to check his shelves; and there neatly arranged where all his dishes and cutleries. Naruto did not know if he should curse the stupid robot that had not simply left the clean dishes on the sink where he always kept them so that he could have them handy or he should curse himself for not even considering that the shelves were in the kitchen for a reason and the reason was probably to act as a storage area.

He decided to sleep on it. Things always looked better in the morning after a good night sleep especially ones where he dreamed of a nice bowl of ramen.

**XXX**

Neji had tried to get some sleep but he just couldn't. The reason for his restlessness was one even he could not exactly determine so rather than spend another hour tossing and turning, he decided to drive to the park. The serenity of the place would probably give him so peace and would help to relax him.

With those thoughts in his mind, he grabbed his car keys and walked out of the apartment. Fifteen minutes after, he was strolling to one of the benches in the park. He took in a deep breath and stared at the stars that twinkled and seemed to wink at him.

The night sky never failed to relax him as he always seemed to lose all his tension in the presence of the moon. His worries always seemed really small in the presence of the big night sky. As the breeze gently moved his long brown hair he saw a shadow that seemed to separate from the others. The shadow slowly moved forward until it had left the cover of the trees and was now illuminated by the moon.

Neji was startled to discover that it was a young man. He was amazed that another person would also be out at that time of the morning and was even more surprised to discover that the younger man did not seem to be aware of his presence.

The other man was shorter with red hair and what looked like a tattoo on the right side of his forehead. The face was very smooth and looked like it was a cross between the chubby cheeks of a child and the chiselled face of an adult. Because of the distance from where he was sitting, Neji could not ascertain the colour of the stranger's eyes but he did notice that it looked like the stranger had bags under his eyes making Neji wonder if the man got any sleep. Before he could make himself known though, the other man strolled out of the park through another entrance and seemed to blend into the night.

After waiting for another twenty minutes, Neji accepted that the other man was not coming back and drove back home. Immediately his head touched the pillow, he fell into a deep sleep and did not wake up until the next morning.

**XXX**

The four friends were gathered together in Naruto's apartment. Luckily for them, although Naruto had gotten some food from Ichiraku's, he had ensured that the cook had mixed things up and not merely packed ramen for him.

The apartment was very neat and for the first time in a long while, was also dust free. Gaara smiled internally as he figured that the robot his brother had given Naruto was probably the housekeeper that was responsible for the tidy state of the apartment.

"Okay everyone. It's been a week already and I am sure that our results from the personality quiz are out. Let's check right now" Kiba stated as he bounced up and down.

"Settle down Kiba. Your state of hyperactivity is giving me a headache and that is troublesome" Shikamaru drawled.

The friends all logged into their e-mail addresses and searched for their mails from the website. After reading their results, they all proceeded to look at one another in surprise. Kiba was the first to speak.

"Basically, what the website told me is that I am extremely hyperactive and my dream job should be to work with animals like dogs and wolves. Cats are out because they are too self-sufficient. Also, my ideal match should be someone who is sweet and calm and who will be a calming influence on my life. The site states that they will send me the name and contact information of my ideal match and also give details for our first date".

"My results simply state that I have an outgoing personality and also possess so much enthusiasm that I am the life of the party. My dream job should be something in the creative department. Apparently, a nine to five job would drive me crazy. I need a lot of excitement in my life and that should also extend to my travels and my relationship and I need a partner that is slightly more settled than myself but will also party like I do and will appreciate all the aspect of my personality. My partner also needs to be one who will take care of me but will accept that I am my own person and I will not be the kind of submissive who allows a dominant personality to roll over him. The website also states that they will send me the name and contact information of my ideal match and the details for the first date if I wish to proceed". All this Naruto stated with a frown as he considered the fact that he had just been called a submissive. He was not happy about that as he had always assumed that he would be the dominant in his relationship.

Gaara was next and as usual he did not mince his words. "I am told that I can be very ruthless and determined as well as resourceful and I would fit best in an executive position that would give me a large amount of power. I do not necessarily need to be at the very top but I need to be in a position of power because I cannot work beneath another person as a subordinate. I am told that I am intense and I need someone that is as intense as me to understand and accept me the way I am but the person needs to be playful enough to pull me out of my shell and help me to relax. As you all said, the site also states that they will send me the contact information of my match in a few days and helpful tips for our first date".

Shikamaru tiredly gave a summary of his results. "I apparently need someone to challenge me and who would know and understand when I need to take a break and enjoy the peaceful day. The same goes for my job".

"Is that all they said Shikamaru" Naruto asked as he stared hard at his friend.

"The information was long, but it's too troublesome to read all that. I merely summarized it for you all. Now can we all get some sleep? I really am tired and it has been a really busy day for me".

With a yawn, his other friends agreed as they all settled down to get some rest.

**XXX**

Sasuke, Neji and Temari had decided to meet at their favourite coffee shop to discuss their results from the website. Sasuke had in front of him a cup of coffee that he requested be black with no sugar. Neji ordered for a latte and was sipping it slowly to savour the taste while Temari had ordered two cups of cappuccino.

The trio drank their coffee and marvelled at the accurateness of their results to the test. Although Sasuke objected to the part of the test that had mentioned that he was too serious and needed someone to shake things up for him a little, he was still alright with the rest of his results. Neji was surprised to learn that he needed to be with someone that he would need to play with and relax when the occasion called for it and Temari was happy with her results. It stated that she needed someone who would give her some space and who would not need her to hold his hand all the time. She was no one's mother and was happy that the quiz could see that too.

All three friends agreed with the result telling them that their dream jobs were to run businesses and as far as they were concerned, they were already doing that and enjoying it so that information was not very useful to them.

They were all aware of the fact that they would need to wait for a few more days before they could be given the contact information of their matches and were therefore slightly anxious to find out who they would be paired off with. Sasuke still fervently hoped that he would not be paired off with someone like his brother's boyfriend.

Temari turned to her two friends and casually mentioned, "I need to go to the mall later today to get a spa treatment and I was wondering if you guys could come with me. Sasuke, I will not accept any excuses from you because you owe me especially since I was the one who helped you with shopping for the things you needed for your apartment after you had bought the place".

Sasuke gave a resigned huff while Neji explained that he had to see his cousin Hinata who had sent him a message earlier in the day asking for his advice about an event she was planning for the official celebration of the end of the fiscal year of Hyuuga Corporation.

With the thought echoing in his head that Neji was one lucky bastard, Sasuke and Temari left the coffee shop and ended north towards the mall. It was going to be a stressful day. Sasuke was sure of it.

**XXX**

Naruto came to a realization. It was a very bad idea to mention that one was going to the mall in a house full of women. They all had something they needed him to get for them and they did not care that he was going to spend hours in the mall getting hair products, skin care products, shower gels and weird items like eyelashes curler. Who needs an eyelash curler anyway? It's either curled or straight. There is nothing wrong with that. Naruto figured that he would never understand women and to attempt to do so will just leave the unfortunate man with a serious migraine.

His hands were already full with different bags and he was going to the spa area to purchase the bath salts that Kiba's mother swore would make any wrinkled skin become as soft as a baby.

Naruto doubted that but decided that he cherished his head staying on his head because the last time he had casually mentioned to Kiba's mother that he could not see the any effect of the mud mask she had put on her face other than making the face look even more wrinkly, he had ended up in the hospital needing multiple stitches and his aunt Tsunade had attended to him while yelling at him that he was stupid and inconsiderate. She had then turned and lashed at Naruto's godfather who had the misfortune of being there at that point in time. Naruto chuckled as he remembered the conversation.

"See you big lump; it's your fault that the boy has lost his sensitive side, does not even know how to get along with women and is completely gay." Tsunade screeched.

"Exactly how is it my fault that the boy has lost his sensitive side and how did I turn him gay? With all the advice I gave him and the sightseeing we did together when I flew him to Italy for his eighteenth birthday, he should be completely straight".

"You incompetent and retarded idiot! Why wouldn't the boy turn gay? You've been showing him weird female parts for the last ten years of his life and even had the audacity to take him to a brothel in Kyoto" Tsunade yelled back at him.

"So, shouldn't that have helped him to be straight?"

"You imbecile! The boy was eight. If that is not enough to scar him for life, I wonder what is" Tsunade yelled as she attempted to clobber her friend.

Naruto continued to chuckle as he reminisced on the memories until the he glanced at the huge clock that was in the middle of the mall and realized that he only had twenty more minutes.

With a muffled eep, he rushed on to get the bath salts. There was no way he was going to bed with a lump on his head.

**XXX**

Sasuke continued to tap his fingers rhythmically against the chair he was sitting on as he silently urged Temari to come out of the sauna. The women in the spa were all acting like sharks who had found their prey and he was not willing to entertain them at all.

The only good thing about the trip was that the chair he was sitting on at the moment was very comfortable and he had been able to buy a new pair of cream coloured loafers that were super smart and sophisticated and were also super comfortable.

As he glanced down at his watch again and realized that time did indeed hate him and was not moving faster but was crawling along as slowly as it could, a slight ding at the door indicated that another customer had entered the store.

With disinterest, he raised his head and stared at the door and saw a man that had his brain freeze for a moment.

He was blonde with the most beautiful pair of blue eyes that he had ever seen. They were the type of eyes that a person could get lost in. He was of average height, had a slightly muscled frame and a beautifully tanned skin.

His mouth was pink and pouty and Sasuke was very certain that it would look even more spectacular wrapped around his cock. As he ran his eyes down the lithe body, Sasuke mentally wondered about the man and how well he would be able to bend as he took Sasuke's cock up his ass. Sasuke was about to talk to the blonde when said blonde opened his mouth and said-

"Wow. What the hell is up with the weird hairstyle you have on your head? You do realize that it looks like a chicken's butt and does nothing for you right? In fact it makes you look ridiculous".

With those words, Sasuke realized something very important. Gorgeous men like the blonde should keep their mouths shut because they end up being really stupid.

**XXX**

A/N: So another chapter for your reading pleasure. I hope you all enjoyed reading it. Well, like I always say, reviews make me happy and they encourage me to scribble and write faster, so read and please review.


	3. The Meeting

Disclaimer: Naruto unfortunately is not mine but rather the exclusive creation of Masashi Kishimoto.

Summary: When a group of friends decide to take a personality quiz that doubles as a dating service, things get very interesting for the friends who are clearly NOT interested! SasuNaru; NejiGaara and others.

Beta'd by me, myself and I.

Author's Note: So, here's another chapter for you to read and enjoy. I hope you all like it and when you get to the button, you press it and review.

To everyone who reviewed, you all are the best and I am so honoured that you are enjoying the story. Thanks a bunch.

**XXX**

Naruto was busy humming the song bringing sexy back by Justin Timberlake as he reached out to grab the handle of the door to the spa. He was quite happy with how quickly he had made it to the spa. From his calculations, he figured that he could be out of the place in five minutes and still have enough time to go to the shop beside the spa to get a new pack of eye pencils for Gaara as a thank you gift. The boy had saved his butt and his assignment and so deserved every bit of gratitude Naruto could give him or in this case, every inch of the eye pencils.

The thoughts were still crowding Naruto's head when he stepped into the spa. His eyes landed on a pair of black snake-skinned boots that looked absolutely fabulous. The owner obviously had amazing tastes.

His eyes then wanted to see the rest of the body of the amazing boots wearing individual. So, he began a lazy perusal up the fashion icon's body. Gorgeous legs encased in a pair of tight black jeans; a fitted black t-shirt that was worn over a spectacularly lean and fit torso; a nicely corded neck; a face that was lean and gorgeous; a pair of black as sin and completely arresting eyes and black hair that looked amazingly soft but scattered at the back like a chicken's butt. At that, Naruto couldn't help but snicker as he wondered why the man would have such a ridiculous hairstyle (not like he didn't still look good with the style). Naruto being true to his nature made his opinion known.

"Wow. What the hell is up with the weird hairstyle you have on your head? You do realize that it looks like a chicken's butt and does nothing for you right? In fact, it makes you look ridiculous".

The black eyed man merely raised a black and well-shaped eyebrow (wait a minute, what self-respecting man shaved his eyebrows anyway, Naruto wondered grumpily) and in a single look was able to convene his disgust and disinterest in the blonde.

The look was followed with a glance from the bottom of Naruto's sneakered feet to his blonde hair and with the removal of his eyes from the blonde; he casually dismissed him like he was of no importance to him, and turned to the phone he pulled out of his pocket.

Naruto did not care who the dark haired man thought he was. No one had the right to dismiss Uzumaki Naruto. No matter how gorgeous they might look.

"You are not fooling anyone you know. Turning to your phone and pretending that you are browsing through it in some strange bid to save face and avoid responding to my statement just confirms that my words got to you, and secretly, you agree with me and you know that I am right. Never mind though. I have the number of an amazing hairdresser who would do wonders of your hair and in no time, it will look half as respectable as my hair does. If you want it, I can..."

A cold voice stopped him from finishing his statement.

"You are annoying and an absolute dumbass idiot. The concept might be a foreign one to you, but I am a very busy man and I check my phone and my e-mails regularly because of that. I do not owe you any explanations, but I want you to get one thing straight. You don't know me and your lame attempts at analysing my behaviour are laughable. Hopefully, you are not considering a career in psychology because you will fail horribly at it. I also find it preposterous that you will attempt to offer me your hairdresser's number even if it is as a joke. My hair is perfection and only a top-notch stylist can touch my locks. Luckily for me, I have a top-notch stylist. I on the other hand am of the opinion that your outburst was merely a means to get my attention. A pity that it was done in such an uncouth manner, I do hope that someday, preferably sometime soon, someone would teach you the fine arts of acceptable behaviour in society".

For a long moment, Naruto could do nothing but blink in stunned amazement. He had no idea exactly how things had escalated from a joke to the outpour of insults.

When he finally got his wits back, he opened his mouth and was about to lambast the arrogant prick when a woman stepped out of the inner room that had on its door, a brass plate that said 'sauna'.

The woman was blonde with two ponytails and had a refined but mischievous air around her. Naruto mentally went through his arsenal of names as he tried to figure out where exactly he had seen her before because her face looked very familiar to him.

As he was about to ask her, she suddenly grabbed the arrogant prick's arm and pulled him out of the spa with her.

Naruto was stumped as he wanted to return the insult the arrogant prick had dealt to him. He huffed at the thought that the prick and his companion were probably not coming back since the spa had the policy of collecting payment from the customers before attending to them. So, the woman had already paid and unless she forgot something, she was most likely not coming back that same day and unfortunately by extension, neither was the prick.

Naruto cheered himself though by hanging on to the promise that if he should ever come in contact with the prick again, he would get his revenge. He just had to wait and see.

With that thought in his mind, Naruto grinned and moved to one of the workers to request for a box of bath salts, while plotting his revenge against the good-looking and insulting ass that had a voice that made him hard. Luckily for him though, he wasn't interested. Arrogant, slick, condescending and annoying asses were totally not his type. Hopefully his type would be waiting for him in his inbox sometime soon.

**XXX**

"Wow Sasuke! You must have really liked the little blonde boy. Although with the way you are agitated at the moment, I should rephrase that to mean you must really want to fuck the guy."

Sasuke who had been trying to keep his cool since they left the spa raised shocked eyes and in a voice that was brimming with outrage, snapped at his friend.

"What the hell do you mean by that Temari? That does not make any fucking sense. I am not fucking interested in the blonde idiot we met at the spa. I cannot even believe that you can even imply that I am".

"Oh please! Like I don't know you very well Sasuke. Save the cries for those that are not as close to you as I am. You insulted the blonde terribly in the spa because of a joke you could have easily ignored. You did not only insult him, but you did it in the frosty, snotty manner that you reserve for when you are really pushed. For crying out loud, Sasuke you actually used the word 'uncouth' in a sentence. You sounded just like your father. You only act like that when you are really agitated and the fact that you have used the word 'fucking' twice in a sentence confirms it. He got under your skin really badly and I know that all that agitation you are showing right now is a prelude to your desire to fuck the guy senseless. This tension from an innocent joke that you could have easily dismissed is of a sexual nature and I wonder why you did not simply collect the blonde's number, take him out for a date and then fuck him. It would have made things easier for you."

Sasuke merely rolled his eyes and replied Temari in a cold and succinct manner, "Fuck you Temari".

With a huff, he moved forward furiously trying to shut out Temari's laughter. He also thought he heard her mention something about the blonde looking very familiar. But at that point, Sasuke did not care anymore but rather concentrated on getting home and getting rid of thoughts of blonde idiots who did not know how to speak or mind their business and yet had beautiful hair and eyes, and a voice that brought to mind the happiness of spring.

_Shit. Now the idiot has me waxing poetic. This has indeed been a very stressful day. I need a drink immediately, and I also need the website to send me the person I matched with as soon as possible. That should help relieve the stressful week I have a feeling I'm going to have._

**XXX**

Temari pulled out the packs of Dum Sum she had purchased from the Chinese restaurant that was on the corner of the street. Chinese food had always been Gaara's favourite and every time he came over to visit, she plied him with the food and conversation, all in a bid to get him to change his mind and come and live with her.

Every time it happened, he would eat the food, thank her for it and calmly decline her offer. She would receive his thanks for the food and refusal to move in to her house calmly and repeat the process the next time he came to visit. They had a routine that worked well for them.

She hoped though that someday soon, he would agree to move in with her. Until he did so, she would not relent in her pursuit.

"So, Gaara, how are your classes going so far?"

Gaara took a while to answer the question as he took a large bite out of the prawn crackers that had been packed with the dish. He took some gulps of water before finally replying.

"The classes are okay. Sometimes they can be a bit boring but I have gotten used to it".

"And how are your friends?"

"They are doing well. Shikamaru still complains that everything is troublesome; Kiba trots about with the puppy he has no idea he has outgrown; and Naruto is living with the robot I asked Kankurou to make for him".

_Ha! There's another opportunity. I don't know why I never considered it. All I have to do is suggest that Gaara should try moving in with Kankurou. I'm sure the reason why he's not responding to my initial suggestion that he should live with me is because I am female. Kankurou however is male, so Gaara should be okay with him._

"So, Gaara how about you move in with Kankurou since you don't want to live with me".

"I actually like living alone Temari. If I stayed with either of you, I would be tempted to kill you so that I could have some peace and quiet. Think of it this way, if we had our own television show, I would be the psychotic younger brother who delights in killing and would always disparage you and attempt to kill you because you disturb my peace of mind. Luckily for us all, we are not on television, and I am not psychotic. All I want is my space. Thanks for the concern though. Besides, what do you have against my apartment in the first place?"

_Wow! That's the longest he has ever said to me. He's joking about the whole 'I'll kill you' bit right? He has to be. Oh crap, he asked a question. I have to reply instead of constantly talking to myself._

"I have a lot of things against it Gaara. Firstly, it's painted in red and black. It's all very morbid, especially that painting of blood dripping from a fountain that you have on your bedroom wall. It's very creepy and I'm sure that it is the colour and the weird painting that has been causing your sleeping problems. Also, I don't like the way those stupid idiots who live in the apartments beside yours look at your ass anytime you walk by them. It's not right."

"You do realize that I am gay right", Gaara asked in a dry tone.

"Yes I know you're gay. But that does not mean that I approve of you dating or being interested in the idiots".

"But you've known them from when you all were kids Temari. Not like I'm interested in them or anything, but if I was, I thought you would approve of them".

"Yes, we grew up together and that is why they cannot and must not touch you. No way is anyone I know, especially those that are close to me dating or worse, sleeping with my brother. I would rather they die first. Anyway, enough talk about this nonsense. Come with me to the kitchen so I can serve you the Chinese fruit salad I made for you. It's very cool and I know you will enjoy it".

With those words, Temari and Gaara moved to the kitchen which each one of them occupied with their thoughts.

**XXX**

Naruto was aware of the fact that most people who met him believed immediately that he was crazy. They wondered about his crazy behaviour, his lack of respect for social etiquette, his inability to conform with the norm, his constant way of saying exactly what was on his mind and his unrepentant attitude to his numerous faults. Of course, the idiots who complained had never met his family.

Tuesday nights were family nights and although some people might not be huge fans of their family, Naruto loved his and was always eagerly awaiting Tuesdays and the new drama it would bring with his family in tow. He used Tuesday to unwind and his family never disappointed him.

Sitting at the head of the table was his father, Namikaze Minato. Naruto knew that he looked exactly like his father. They had the same blonde hair, blue eyes and mischievous smile. However, there was one thing they did not have in common and that was Minato's horrible attempts at singing in front of an audience. Naruto knew he was not a spectacular singer, and therefore, he restricted his singing to the shower. The only people who heard his singing voice were those who happened to be in the apartment while he showered (although in recent times, the number had significantly dwindled to only consisting of his friends and relatives. Sometimes, the state of his sex life really depressed him). His father on the other hand was convinced that he had the voice of an opera singer, especially anytime he happened to be tipsy. This therefore led to him performing his numbers in front of his unwilling audience. At the moment, he was massacring Frankie Vallie's to good to be true, which he sang while blinking his big blue eyes at his wife who staunchly ignored him to place her bets in the game she was playing.

No one who saw his father in the state he was in would ever figure out that the man was one of the richest, most ruthless and powerful men in the world. It was also obvious from the way he and his son acted, that they liked keeping their fame under wraps. It made life easier for them both.

Sitting opposite Minato was his wife and Naruto's mother: Kushina. Naruto looked nothing like his mother physically, but he got his abundant energy supply and reserves from her. Kushina had boundless energy and never seemed to run out of it. She taught at the Konoha Institute of Arts and still had time to paint, sculpt and run her art galleries all over the world. She was her own woman and her fame and recognition were separate from her husband's. She hated the limelight and only appeared occasionally at public functions. Eccentricity was her watchword which was the reason why even though she took her husband's name after she married him, she gave Naruto her father's surname. It was the condition she had insisted on before she agreed to marry Minato who was ever willing to please his wife. Fortunately, she and her husband were still satisfied with the decision and so was Naruto.

Beside Kushina was a family friend who had been promoted to the position of honorary aunt: Tsunade, who was busy scowling at the game she was playing with Kushina and drinking heavily from her sake bottle, an indication that she was losing the game horribly and was not very happy about it.

Tsunade however, had no self-control and just continued to place her bets and drink her sake. Naruto always found it strange that someone like Tsunade who clearly had no self-control as far as booze and gambling were concerned could be the best neurosurgeon in the country. The fact that she had enough control to cut into another person's head and not botch up the job and yet lacked complete self-control when dealing with gambling and alcohol was a definite paradox.

Opposite Tsunade sat another family friend who had also risen in ranks to become an honorary uncle to Naruto: Jiraiya. His uncle Jiraiya and his aunt Tsunade had been friends since they were both children.

With that history in place, Naruto always wondered why Jiraiya never knew when to shut up or run whenever aunt Tsunade was on her regular rampages and wanted to punch his lights out. She had been beating him for decades already and Naruto wondered why Jiraiya had not perfected the art of 'Escape from Tsunade; the woman with the iron fist' already.

Jiraiya was sitting quietly and nursing his bottle of sake while looking very morose. From the look on his face, Naruto figured that he was wishing he was at a hot spring spying on naked women.

His uncle was a great pervert, but he also happened to be one of the best martial arts instructors in the history of the country and had dojos where he trained martial arts hopefuls scattered all over. He also wrote the Icha Icha series which amazingly enough was well liked in the country. It was therefore not uncommon to see teachers and students at the university reading it everywhere. Naruto never failed to shudder whenever he remembered the countless 'research' work he had to accompany Jiraiya on for the sake of the annoying books.

Finally, at the other end of the table was Naruto's cousin who occasionally came to visit them: Kyuubi. Kyuubi was older than Naruto by three years and when they were growing up, he spent most of his time teasing the blonde and generally making him miserable. However, he always ensured that everyone knew that Naruto was his to tease alone. Those who forgot always found themselves in the hospital with the misfortune of being operated on by Tsunade.

Needless to say, Naruto was only bullied by one person and that was his red-haired, tattoo wearing, stock auto car racing, highly mischievous and dare-devil cousin.

As Naruto stared at his family and laughed at Jiraiya who had been leering at one of the maids until Tsunade had sent a glass of wine sailing at his face, he admitted to himself that h was content with the esoteric nature of his family and loved them all, warts and all.

"So Naruto, I ran into Kiba at the pet shop the other day, and he mentioned something about you all taking a personality quiz that also doubled as a dating service. Why didn't you tell us sweetheart" Kushina asked while smiling slightly at her son.

There was absolute silence and all eyes were suddenly on him, clearly waiting for him to say something. Naruto however did not know what to say so he simply mumbled an answer and hoped it would suffice.

"I didn't say it because it wasn't a big deal. We took the test as a joke to see what the results would be. It's not like we plan to meet our soul mates there anyway".

"Naruto, you know you can meet a soul mate anywhere. Grandma Chiyo met her soul mate at a contest where she had to bob for apples. She saw his nose all red and swollen in the tub and assumed his nose was an apple and bobbed him by accident. The rest as we all know is history and they were together for sixty years until he died and she decided she was going to be a cougar and only date men younger than her by at least thirty years", Minato said as he pointed his finger warningly at his son.

Naruto was still trying to process the strange romance story his father had just told him when Kyuubi had to put in his two cents.

"So, cousin, does that mean that you've not been getting laid regularly and so you had to resort to hook-ups via the internet?"

Naruto merely ignored him because he knew that to speak at the moment would give Kyuubi enough ammunition to bury him alive with.

"Well, whenever he is around, bring him to the hospital so I can examine his head properly. We cannot have you dating someone that has a brain disease" Tsunade spoke, her words slurring slightly.

"Just bring him to the mountains. I want to show him the naked girls that bathe at the topless beach" Jiraiya said grinning.

"Hush all of you. Naruto, when you meet your match, bring him over for dinner on a Tuesday so we can all meet him and welcome him to the family. I'm sure our calendars would be free", Kushina stated calmly.

Naruto listened with dawning horror and his mouth agape. Yes, he loved his family and everything about them. But there was one thing about them that he had never been able to stand and so he always pushed it to the back of him mind: their prying ways and how it always spelled doom for his relarionships.

_Oh Shit!_

**XXX**

Shikamaru was of the opinion that families were troublesome, women were troublesome and so were conferences. Especially the one he was present in at that moment in time. The speaker had been yammering on and on about the need for individuals to think outside the box and focus on the needs of their markets.

The speaker at that moment was talking about how mouse-traps were not what the average consumer needed. Rather, the average consumer wanted what he or she could use to catch the rats quickly and effectively. That could be anything.

Shikamaru mentally and momentarily cursed his father who had left him to the wolves. He was the one who was actually meant to attend the conference, but a glare from Shikamaru's mother and a particular hard thump with a rolling pin on the dough she had been kneading with mutters about her husband breaking his promise to take her to the beauty shop to get her nails done had his father singing a different tune entirely.

He promptly tossed Shikamaru under the bus and appeased his wife by stating that Shikamaru would go in his stead to the conference. They had both agreed to the newly made plan without even consulting him.

That was why he was sitting in a high-backed chair without any tables to sleep on; no windows from which he could stare at the clouds all the while listening to some man droning on about mouse-traps. Shikamaru consoled himself with the knowledge that the speech would soon be over.

Thirty minutes later, Shikamaru was walking along the tables, adding bits of finger foods to his plate. Everyone at the mixer was socializing, but Shikamaru was not interested. He had been coerced into coming for the program. All he wanted to do at the moment was to simply eat and leave the place. He was moving towards the tables that had sweets on them when the couple just ahead of him became completely engaged in their conversation and by moving slightly, blocked his path.

The man was busy complaining to the woman about his inability to understand what the last speaker had been talking about. His companion sounded very tired as she kept trying to explain the concept to him. All her efforts proved unsuccessful as the man still complained that he did not grasp what the speaker had been saying; and all the while, they had obstructed Shikamaru's path and had not moved.

"How troublesome. Dude, all you have to do is replace the mouse-traps with another object and it would all be easier to grasp. For example, the consumer does not need a quarter of an inch drill, what he needs is a quarter of an inch hole. If he can get a product that would give him that needed hole in a more effective manner or at a cheaper price, then he would leave your product and purchase the new product. Now, can you both move out of the way? You are blocking the route to the sweets".

With those words, Shikamaru moved past the couple and while doing so, noticed that the woman had blonde hair packed into two ponytails and a lovely face that housed a pair of eyes that were at the moment watching him very shrewdly.

Finally, he got to the table and began to sample the delicious desserts. As the sweets dissolved in his mouth, he grinned slightly and figured that at least the food part of the conference was not so bad.

**XXX**

Entering the newest and hottest club in town was very easy for the three friends. Neji owned the place, so it was extremely easy for them to get into the club. Once the bouncers had seen Neji, they inclined their heads slightly and immediately opened the door for them to enter.

Inside, the club lived up to its reputation. The Disc Jockey did his mixes well; the waiters were courteous; the bar men knew how to make any and every drink the customers requested for and the place was full to the brim. The Byakugan was a success, and Sasuke believed that Neji should be feeling very pleased with himself.

They walked up to the VIP section of the club and made their orders for their drinks. Sasuke requested for vodka on the rocks, Neji wanted a gin and tonic while Temari asked for a glass of sex on the beach.

As they nursed their drinks and enjoyed the music, Neji broke the silence by speaking.

"So, I got my match results today. I was matched with someone with the name Sabaku Gaara, strange because it's your name also Temari. He's probably a distant cousin or something. Anyway the site recommended that we meet at nine on Saturday night here at the club for our first meeting and date. They gave their reason for the choice as the open atmosphere, music, drinks and dancing, playing an important role in helping us to open up to each other better."

"My match is someone named Nara Shikamaru. The site also gave us the Byakugan as our meeting point and the venue for our first date, and the reasons for the choice were the same one they gave to you", Temari spoke as she crossed and uncrossed her legs.

"Well, my match is an Uzumaki Naruto. We were also given the same venue and time as you guys were and the reasons the site gave were the same as the one they gave you two. Anyway, we'll see what Saturday brings. Right now, I suggest that we dance a bit."

With those words, the three friends left the lounge, moved to the dance floor and joined the other people who were already dancing.

**XXX**

Naruto was certain of it. Robo guy was an alien from out of space that had been sent to torment him. What else could the robot be? Or maybe it had been possessed by a demon like in the film where the doll had been possessed with the spirit of a serial killer. But seriously, what else could the robot be?

Naruto had once again given the order for the robot to clean the house. Firstly, the demonic thing had washed his briefs and arranged them by colour. Then he had entered the shower stall to clean it while he was in it having a shower.

Naruto was certain that Robo guy was not only demonic, but he was also gay. That was the only explanation for why the robot had been trying to get a look at his ass. Trying to clean the stall indeed. Ha! It was all a ploy to see his ass. That was it.

As Naruto continued to grumble, he was joined by Kiba, then Shikamaru came later and finally Gaara arrived, dragging Kankurou in with him. As they all sat and asked him what was wrong with him, Naruto narrated the tale of the gay robot that had no respect for boundaries. His friends all laughed uproariously at the tale.

As they all laughed, Kankurou asked them if anything new had happened to them. They all then proceeded to inform him about the website and the quiz. At this point, Naruto was nearly jumping in joy as he chimed in.

"My match results finally came out. I've been matched with an Uchiha Sasuke, and we are to meet at the new club in town: the Byakugan, on Saturday night at nine. The reason for the choice of the club according to the website is so that we can know each other better in a relaxed environment."

"My match is a Hyuuga Neji and I got the same venue and date as you Naruto, and the reason they gave me for the choice of the venue is the same as yours. Although they mentioned that the club is the first step towards drawing me out of my shell" Gaara remarked with a small frown of annoyance as he considered the last words from the website.

"I too got the same venue and date. The given reasons are the same and my match is someone who remarkably enough shares your name Gaara. The world is a troublesome place. She's probably a long distance cousin or so. Her name is Sabaku Temari".

With those words, Gaara and Kankurou gave a little start, but they said nothing, so Shikamaru filed it away to think about later.

"Wow. You guys are like so lucky. You are all together. I've been matched with a Hyuuga Hinata. Hmmm, I wonder if she's related to your own match Gaara. Anyway, my date is on Saturday at eight at the Mangekyou restaurant. Apparently, the choice of the venue is to help my date who is shy and gets very agitated in crowded places. The venue is to keep things calm for her", Kiba stated briefly with a huge grin on his face.

"Well, I hope you guys all have fun. Now, dig in and enjoy your meal. It's not every day I will pay for your meals you know, so eat up and enjoy this while it lasts" Kankurou said while staring at his brother and their friends.

With a laugh, they all dug into their meals with relish and each wondered wwhat Saturday would bring.

**XXX**

The two sets of friends all arrived at the Byakugan at slightly different times. Sasuke, Temari and Neji were there at a quarter to nine and stood by an alcove that was just beside the entrance where the website had told them to stay at.

Naruto, Gaara and Shikamaru got to the alcove at exactly nine. As the two sets of friends stared at each other, each of them felt different emotions and those where the emotions that were at the moment, reflected on their faces.

Gaara just stared at the group and wondered who his match was. His voice was low as he asked, "Hyuuga Neji?"

A man with long brown hair, gorgeous pale eyes and an amazing body came forward and smirked. Gaara was relieved that his match was not ugly and was very attractive.

Neji nearly rubbed his hands together in glee as he stared at his match who also happened to be the red head with the tattoo- love written in beautiful Kanji; he could see it clearly now- from the park. Things were going to be very interesting.

Shikamaru stepped forward and asked in a bored tone, "Sabaku Temari?"

He was startled as a blonde haired woman stepped forward and he recognized her from the conference as the one who blocked his path to the sweets. Oh, this was troublesome.

Temari was surprised to discover that the brown-haired know-it-all from the conference was her match. She was also worried that Neji- of all people- was her baby brother's match. This was not good and not acceptable at all.

She also stared in surprise at the blonde hair guy from the spa. As she watched him standing next to Gaara, she suddenly remembered where she had seen him. He was Gaara's best friend from school and although they had never met, Gaara always kept pictures of his family and friends, so she had seen him from a picture before. That certainly explained the difficulty she had remembering the face. She had not really met the blonde before.

Naruto simply glared at the only person left. He was totally livid as he realized that the arrogant prick was his match. The quiz was obviously full of shit because there was nothing he wanted to do at the moment but punch the ass-wipe. There was no way he was going to even consider dating the conceited jerk.

As Sasuke stared in horror at the blonde who was his match and the annoying idiot from the spa, a thought that made him wince passed through his mind.

_Shit! Shit! Shit! Blonde haired, blue eyed, loud mouthed, a bubbly personality, a refusal to stick to the status quo and an utter lack of respect for boundaries. The idiot is another Deidara in the making, but with the way he was at the spa, I have a feeling that he would be much worse. Shit, I am so fucked!_

**XXX**

Author's Note: So, that is the end of the chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it. Please read and review because they make me giggle and smile and encourage me to never stop writing. I'm a review whore and so I demand that you pay me in reviews. Lol.

I'm going to start another fic sometime soon, in like a week or so. That won't stop me from updating this fic though. The story will be a NejiGaara pairing, with a side pairing of SasuNaru. So, if you want to know when it's up, put me on your alert list or something, so you will know when I get new stories out.

Well, here's hoping that you all have a splendid week. Ja ne.


	4. The Plotting Begins

Disclaimer: Naruto unfortunately is not mine but rather the exclusive creation of Masashi Kishimoto.

Summary: When a group of friends decide to take a personality quiz that doubles as a dating service, things get very interesting for the friends who are clearly NOT interested! SasuNaru; NejiGaara and others.

Beta'd by me, myself and I.

Author's Note: A huge thanks to the lovely Mystique Monique aka Mina, who pointed out to me that Temari's response when they all met at the club was written like she had no idea that Neji was Gaara's match even though Neji mentioned it at their meeting when they first visited Byakugan. I so totally over-looked that aspect. So, I will try and cover it up in the first part of this chapter. Let me know if I was able to do so, and thanks again Mystique Monique aka Mina for the observation . This chapter is dedicated to you.

**XXX**

"Neji, there is absolutely no was in hell you are dating my baby brother, so just forget about it", Temari said as she glared at her friend and moved in to stand between him and Gaara.

"Oh, so that's the reason why you both share the same surname. Why didn't you confess to knowing him when I mentioned his name when we all met at the club days ago? Besides, what's the big deal in me dating your brother, and why didn't you object initially when I said I wanted to date him?" Neji asked as he tried going around Temari to get to Gaara. She was not having it, and stayed firmly where she was.

"I didn't mention that he was my brother because it is a family thing. Unless we meet each other's friends and we give each other the permission to tell them, we pretend like we don't know each other", Temari replied as she looked hard at her friend.

"Can you hear yourself speak? That is so confusing and doesn't make any sense", Neji said with a confused look on his face.

"It might be confusing to you but it's not to us. We are not actually from Konoha as you know. All you know about me is that I own a company. You don't even know that the name of the company is Sabaku Corp—there is a start from everyone except Gaara as they all recognise the name of Suna's biggest conglomerate—and my family is extremely wealthy. People follow each of us in order to obtain things from us or get to our siblings. They might use Gaara to get to me or Kankurou, or use me to get to Kankurou or Gaara. This of course does not include the numerous kidnapping attempts which occur because an enemy or someone from a company competing with ours, want to use the person kidnapped as leverage to get what they want from the others. We've had to move a lot and have used our power and money to wipe our records from every file on this earth. The only name people know is the name of the company; they don't know who runs it. Our old business partners after a while believed the news that we had died in a boating accident. We still pretend not to know each other after all these years because old habits die hard and that is why I pretended not to know Gaara", Temari said, finally winding down to take in a deep breath.

"Wow. That is surprising Temari. But, after all you've said, there is something I would like to know", Neji said as he crossed his arms.

"What is it?" Temari asked a bit warily. Neji was always very unpredictable. Heavens only knew what he was about to say.

"Well, why have you now informed us about your relationship with Gaara? It's not like he gave you the permission to tell us now did he?" Neji asked with a straight face.

Temari sighed lightly as she replied, "I've told you because you are all friends and Gaara is now present. It he was not ready for you to know, it would have been easy for him to come over and physically shut my mouth. It is something that he has done before and is quite capable of doing again. My brother moves very quickly".

"Okay, that question has been answered somewhat but you have not answered the second", Neji said as he shifted lightly on his feet.

Temari was slightly confused as she asked, "What question is that?"

"What's the big deal in me dating your brother and why didn't you object initially when I first mentioned that he was my match. You didn't even give any visible reaction", Neji said, repeating his previously asked questions.

"The first reason for my lack of reaction is to prevent you from knowing that we are related. If I had objected vehemently then, you would have suspected that something wasn't right. After all, why would I object to you dating someone I didn't know? The second reason is much simpler. I didn't think you would be interested in him. It was possible for you to have met him and not be attracted to him at all and you might have decided to have a simple and easy relationship with as little sexual contact as possible; for a while, I completely forgot the type of person you are. But, when I saw the way you looked at him after he and his friends arrived, I realised I must have been crazy to have been initially okay with the two of you dating. I mean, it is you Neji, and I recognise the look you gave him. There is no way I am allowing you to date my baby brother. In answer to your other question, there is a big deal in you dating Gaara because he is my little brother and I am not leaving him in your hands. I know what you are capable of and my brother is going to end up with a nice, sweet boy who would be his companion; not you this sex addict", Temari nearly screeched at the end of the speech.

Neji simply smirked at her instead of replying and Gaara burst out laughing at the ludicrous statement.

Temari merely huffed. She knew what she knew and she wasn't allowing Neji to date her younger brother.

Gaara, after laughing long and hard finally spoke, "But Temari, you are aware that Shikamaru is my friend right? Aren't you being a hypocrite by saying that I can't date your friend when you have been matched with and are going to date mine?"

There was silence for a while until Shikamaru spoke. "What a pain. Gaara, you can rest easy. I am not at all interested in dating your sister".

With those words, Shikamaru stuck his hands in his pockets and walked away. Temari tried to keep calm, but Shikamaru's words kept echoing in her head. With a cry of rage, she hurried after the piece of shit to give him a piece of her mind.

With Temari out of the way, Neji moved closer to Gaara in an attempt to talk with him. "So, how about a drink? A bartender inside makes an amazing margarita".

Gaara took his time to look at his match properly. There was no doubt that the man was good-looking and was aware of the fact that he was good-looking. It was something he was sure Hyuuga Neji had heard a large number of times and used to his advantage. Gaara vowed to make it a very difficult race for Neji, He would sleep with him, yes, but he wasn't going to make it easy for the man.

Gaara moved to the door of the club. As he stood beside the bouncer, he called out to Neji with a smirk on his face, "Coming?"

Neji's immediate thought was, _"Oh Yeah! Sometime preferably with my cock in your hands, or in your mouth or buried in your ass. I'll take any of the three options._

As he hurried after Gaara, he mentally thanked Temari's acquaintance for creating the quiz. This was going to be very interesting. He could sense it.

**XXX**

Everything appeared hazy to Naruto. It was like he was present, but at the same time out of his body. He could vaguely hear voices and his subconscious noted all that was being said.

The blond haired chick from the spa was Gaara's older sister—no wonder she had looked so familiar; he had seen her picture in Gaara's apartment but had assumed she was just an older friend or something—and she gave some convoluted explanation for the reason why she hadn't told her friends that she was related to Gaara.

It didn't make any sense to him, but her pale-eyed friend probably understood what she had said. Naruto though, was sure that if it had been up to Gaara to give an explanation for why he hadn't told his friends that he had been related to the chick, he would have just given them a look and said something like he didn't feel like it. Gaara was just straight-to-the-point and honest that way which was why Naruto appreciated him as a friend; wealthy or not.

He had also noticed when Shikamaru had left and had been chased by Gaara's sister. He had a feeling that his friend would probably be complaining about the troublesome woman when they all met again.

Naruto also noticed when Gaara left to enter the club with his match, but he said nothing to his friend when he did so. That was because all his emotions were concentrated in the black-haired annoying jerk—Sasuke Uchiha, or so the website had called him—of a man that stood before him.

How the hell could the quiz have ever considered that he would want to date the conceited asshole? He should demand a refund immediately because the people who handled the results obviously had no idea about what they were doing.

At the thought of the refund, Naruto paused as he remembered that registration on the site had been free. Shit! So, how could he justify ranting at them? Besides, it's not like the quiz makers had been at the spa to witness the humiliation Sasuke—Naruto sneered at the name—at heaped on him.

As his thoughts were running through his mind, Sasuke spoke, "The level of incompetence in the world is astounding. There is no excuse for stupidity and the person that correlated the results must be very stupid. How else could he or she, as the case may be, justify pairing me up with a moron? Or is this some kind of joke? There is no way in hell I would date such a total idiot!"

Naruto who had been trying to calm himself from the beginning of Sasuke's speech finally lost his cool and screeched, "Who are you calling a moron you bastard? I can't believe the quiz would set me up with such an egomaniac. Who the hell do you think you are? How dare you insult me? You stand there with your ridiculous hairstyle—which by the way still looks like a chicken's butt—and dare call me idiotic? You are the one who is idiotic for leaving your house with your hair looking like that and that chip on your shoulder. The thought of dating you is revolting to me and I would never agree to even consider dating you even if you are the last man on earth. You are not worth it".

It was with a high level of satisfaction that he noticed that Sasuke's mouth noticeably tightened as he snarled, "I can't believe that you called me an egomaniac when it is so obvious that you are the arrogant one who is also clearly suffering from a low self-esteem. It takes a high level of self-confidence to pull of this style I am carrying and someone like you can never get that. Also, the only reason why you are busy talking about me not being worth it—at that Sasuke fairly growled—is because you know that you do not have what it takes to get me or capture my attention. So, rather than accept that, you are consoling yourself by spinning some worthless lie about me not being worth your while. Everybody can see, you ignorant fool, that I am gorgeous, rich, classy, intelligent and hot as fuck. The same cannot be said for you".

At those words, Naruto bellowed, completely forgetting that they were outside and their conversation could be heard by everybody. "You bastard! How dare you imply that I am not attractive, rich, hot, classy and intelligent? Who the hell do you think you are? I will have you know that I am all of those things and more, and if I wanted, I could have you dying to have me".

Sasuke merely gave him a look filled with disbelief at his last words. The look made Naruto lose it immediately, and with a shout, he launched himself at Sasuke. Just as he pulled back his fist to throw a punch at the cocky face, someone grabbed his arm.

He instantly turned around to snap at the person until he noticed Gaara's green eyes looking at him with a look he could not decipher. "You are causing a scene Naruto. Besides, I know you don't want your mother hearing about how you and a guy beat yourself up in front of the most popular club in Konoha. Come inside and have a drink. I am sure it will help to calm you down somewhat".

The words were like a splash of cold water. After a few calming breaths, Naruto gave a sigh and nodded slightly at Gaara. Together, the two entered the club, followed by the pale-eyed man who was conversing with Sasuke as they too entered the club. Gaara dragged Naruto to the VIP section. Naruto immediately went over to the bar and asked the bartender if he had Russian vodka. When the man nodded, he requested for a glass of the vodka, poured over ice and a bottle of water.

He knew he was going to drink a lot but did not want to get too drunk, and water had always slightly negated the effect of the alcohol in his system.

As he drank his glass of vodka, he glanced across the room at Uchiha Sasuke who was balancing a drink in one hand and holding on to a younger man who was attempting to give him a lap dance. The sight was disturbing to Naruto for reasons he was not ready to examine.

After a while of watching Sasuke and the lap dancing giving man whose hands were slowly creeping towards his crotch, and a lot of glasses of vodka, Naruto got up and walked to Gaara. He whispered to his friend that he was going to take a cab home and walked out of the club without looking back; if he had, he would have seen Sasuke pushing off the other man and leaving the club shortly after he did.

**XXX**

Neji found the entire situation amusing, although he had of course prevented Sasuke from knowing that the entire scenario had been funny to him. If he had, there would have been hell to pay.

It had been painfully obvious that the two men had been attracted to each other and were fighting the attraction. From the way Gaara was smiling slightly, he too, must have noticed the sparks that flew between their two friends.

As he considered the whole issue, he had an idea which to him was a brilliant one. He immediately walked over towards Gaara and said, "Your friend—Naruto I think his name was—is living in denial. Unfortunately, so is Sasuke. Now, I know I would love to date you and definitely sleep with you, and I will like to do so immediately. But from our talks together, I can see that you are very reluctant so I have a proposition for you which will make the chase very interesting for the both of us".

"Oh? And what is that?" Gaara asked with a smirk.

"First things first, I want to know. How long do you think it will take before your friend ends up with Sasuke?" Neji asked.

"Well, with the way he was screaming, I would say about three months" Gaara drawled, wondering why Neji wanted to know.

"Good! I on the other hand believe that the two of them will end up together in about a month; give or take. Sasuke works fast".

"Ha! Naruto is stubborn and trust me when I say that your friend would not know what hit him. Naruto is very stubborn and extremely hard-headed. It will take about a minimum of three months before they will end up together".

"I'm glad to see that you are so sure. Care to make a wager?" Neji asked with a sly grin.

Gaara immediately smiled. Ha! He knew where this was going. He definitely didn't mind, especially since he knew that things had been boring of late for both himself and Naruto. "Sure, why not".

"Well then, if I win this wager, and Sasuke and Naruto end up together in about a month, I want you to agree to a relationship with me for an indefinite period of time".

"And if I win?" Gaara asked.

"Well that is up to you. It all depends on what you want".

"Well, I don't do relationships. They bore me. So, if I win, I will agree to fuck you; once, and then I never want to see you again. How you will handle that, with Temari being your friend and all is your business. Secondly, Naruto's mother coerced me into spending a weekend four months from now, with some of her students. The whole idea of the weekend is to make myself available to the students who will ask me various questions about all that is needed to run a business and all that crap. I however hate crowds and giving speeches. But you look like the kind of person who would find such a thing enjoyable, unlike my stupid friends who have consistently avoided the topic so that they would not be asked to help me with the weekend. So, I want you to go for the conference on my behalf and convince Naruto's mother that you were so thrilled at the thought of speaking to young minds searching for more knowledge that you begged me to allow you to replace me at the conference. You have to be very convincing though, otherwise she will realise the truth and make my life miserable and I do not want that. Those are my terms and I want to emphasise that this is what I will get should Naruto and Sasuke end up together in at least three months from now—and by end up together, I mean that they must end up in a relationship and not merely end up in bed together. Do we have a deal?" Gaara asked with a wicked grin.

Neji considered the words. Gaara's terms were things he should consider a bonus as either way, he would get to fuck the red-haired man. But the little time he had spent with him convinced Neji that he wanted a relationship with the man. He wanted to talk with him, spend time with him, take strolls in the park with him whenever they both couldn't sleep, torture Temari with him and definitely fuck him a lot; definitely more than once.

He did wonder though why Gaara had used the speaking engagement for his friend's mother as a request. To him, there was nothing wrong in speaking at an event and it was something he loved doing. He filed the thought away to think about later.

"Well then, I accept your terms. We will have to meet regularly to give progress reports and we will also have to consider how to engineer their next meeting. As you must have noticed, neither of them looked like they would be willing to meet each other any time soon, especially with a foreknowledge of the meet".

"Okay, so what do you suggest?" Gaara asked as he contemplated the words Neji had spoken. The man had a point. Although Naruto secretly liked Sasuke, he would rather be tied and bound than agree to meet the man again willingly. It was something he had observed.

"My suggestion is that we should exchange our phone numbers. That way, whenever we come up with an idea for a potential meeting between the two of them, we will be able to contact the other person to pass along the news".

"That's okay by me".

With those words, Gaara snatched a napkin from the table and wrote his number on it. Neji did the same, and the two exchanged napkins.

With that done, Gaara claimed that he had a busy day the next day and had to leave. With a wave, he left the club and Neji smiled at the written number in his hands. By the time he will be done with him, Gaara would not know what hit him, and neither will Sasuke. His friend should be grateful though. He would end up with the guy he secretly wants, and Neji would have the red-head permanently in his life. It was a win-win situation for the two of them.

**XXX**

Sasuke was fuming as he drove home. He could not believe how horribly a night that had a lot of potential had turned out to be.

The blond menace seemed to be everywhere he went and he suspected that the universe had it in for him. How else could it have been possible that his match was the annoying blond he had met at the spa?

With a screech of his tires, he pulled into his parking lot and jogged up the stairs. He was very tired and angry and planned to have a stiff drink—most likely whiskey—and sleep all through Sunday. If he wanted to, he could even pull off more sleeping till Monday. His class was at two in the afternoon after all.

He pushed open his door, took off his jacket which he neatly folded and place on the chair before he turned around and pulled the switch. Light flooded the room at the same time he noticed the figure sprawled on his sofa. He felt the throbbing in his head get worse and snarled, "Itachi, what the fuck are you doing here and how the hell did you get into my apartment".

Itachi chuckled lightly before replying with a smirk, "It's simple really. I picked your locks; a useful trick that Deidara taught me".

Sasuke refrained from placing his aching head in his palms as he glared at his brother. "You do realise that the 'useful' trick is a criminal act and I can have you arrested right?"

"Oh, do stop with the jokes little brother. There is no police officer in Konoha that would arrest me; we both know that. Besides, uncle Madara will tell his subordinates that it's all a joke and then he will spend most of his days breaking into your apartment thus daring you to arrest the superintendent of the police force", Itachi replied with a laugh.

Sasuke glared at his brother and wondered who he had offended to be in his present situation. The night had been terrible and now his brother's presence was the coup de grace. With a growl he said, "Whatever Itachi. Just get out. Today has been a very terrible day and I just want to get drunk and sleep it off. You are not helping at all".

"What could be so terrible that you are not willing to listen to what I have to say? I drove all the way here for a reason you know. Hmmm, I wonder what could have made you so angry. Are you perchance having boy troubles?" Itachi taunted.

With a snarl, Sasuke pointed at the door, "Out! Now!"

Itachi smirked as he stood from the sofa. "Boy oh boy, aren't we touchy today. It's definitely a man then. Whatever, I will see you later". With those words, he walked out of the door, already planning to call Neji as soon as he could, to ask him what exactly had happened to his little brother. He was certain Neji would be able to give him useful information.

Sasuke deeply sighed as he poured his drink and began to take it in huge gulps. After he had finished more than half his bottle of whisky, he moved to his bed and promptly fell asleep. It had been a very stressful day and hopefully things would get better very soon.

**XXX**

Neji stretched his fingers and his back as he stood from his seat. It had been a long two-hour lecture about corporate espionage by Ibiki Sensei and he was tired. The man was a sadist who gave long notes and even longer assignments and now he had a hundred and fifty paged paper to prepare for.

As he stretched, he looked at his two friends who had begun to pack their things. Ibiki Sensei's class was the last one for the day and both Temari and Sasuke were ready to leave.

During their lunch break, he had asked Temari how the rest of her Saturday had gone. She had sniffed lightly and she had replied that she had caught up with the man—Shikamaru she had called him—and had given him a piece of her mind.

How that piece of mind had resulted in a date she had dared him to take her on, she couldn't say. But, a date she now had with the ponytail haired man and she refused to be a coward and call it off.

Frankly, Neji was convinced that she secretly liked the guy and all that had happened had been Temari's cunning way of getting what she wanted. It was something Neji applauded as he appreciated her brilliance.

Sasuke on the other hand, had spent the entire time scowling and muttering about the dumb Uzumaki Naruto. It took a lot of strength for Neji not to laugh as he had spent a lot of time staring amusedly at his oblivious friend.

Even Temari had grinned at Sasuke when she had said that she had been right at the spa to tell Sasuke that he definitely wanted to fuck the blond. When she had said that, Sasuke had glared at her and had proceeded to dig into his spaghetti. Temari had merely laughed harder at the sight.

The whole thing had been hilarious to Neji, but at the same time, he had wondered how he was going to get Naruto and Sasuke to meet in a way that neither of them would be able to storm off and leave. However, no solutions were coming to his mind and he was getting very frustrated.

With one eye, he watched Sasuke storm out of the room, followed closely by Temari. He hefted his bag when suddenly his pocket vibrated. He pushed his hand into his pocket and brought out his phone. A glance at the screen showed that it was Itachi that was calling him.

"Hello Itachi. To what do I owe this unexpected call of yours?"

"Hello Neji. It has been long. Sorry I couldn't make it to your family's party. I am sure Sasuke told you that I had been called away on business. Anyway, my reason for calling is this: Sasuke returned to his apartment really angry on Saturday night. I suspect that his anger was caused by a man. So, I would like to know what you can tell me about it", Itachi asked going straight to the point.

Neji was considering drawing out the process when it occurred to him that Itachi could help him with the bet. "Actually, Sasuke was matched with a guy by the personality quiz we took. From what I have gathered, the two had met before, but the meeting had not gone well as your brother insulted the other man—like he always does—terribly. However, there is a definite spark between them even though the blond man insults and rubs your brother the wrong way. I have been considering how to get them to meet each other under more pleasant circumstances but nothing comes to mind. Do you have any suggestions?"

"I will get back to you suddenly wanting to help my brother's love life, as I know there is something you must stand to gain from the whole affair; you are not selfless Neji and we both know it. I don't know what it is, but I will find out. You say this man has the ability to irritate my brother?" Itachi asked.

"Yes definitely. Sasuke doesn't know whether he should strangle him or fuck him".

"Well then, if that is so, I am definitely interested in tormenting Sasuke some more and if that will happen by him ending up with this guy, then I will help to get them together. I will just have to come up with something. What is the man's name?" Itachi asked, already plotting and planning.

"Uzumaki Naruto".

At that, there was a long silence, and then Itachi burst out laughing. Neji wondered what was so funny and asked Itachi why he was laughing.

Luckily for him, Itachi was in a very good mood and immediately answered, "Uzumaki Naruto is the son of the man our company is partnering with in order to work on the faulty railways in Konoha. It is a huge job and Sasuke knows how important it is for everything to go smoothly. The reason I am laughing is because Minato is throwing a masquerade party in a week. Now, all I have to do is to force Sasuke to come and find a way to convince Naruto into showing up as he rarely attends his father's parties—I think he doesn't really like the media glare—and I don't know how to change his mind".

"The whole bit with getting Naruto to attend the party is something I can help with. I know a friend of Naruto's that can get him to come", Neji was pleased to say. "Only problem is that Naruto and Sasuke might recognise each other's voices which would cause problems."

"I can handle the part of the voice. That should be easy to do. As for you Neji, do make sure that you attend the party. I definitely want to meet you and your friend". With those words, Itachi ended the call.

Neji immediately made up his mind to attend the party—he could spend more time with Gaara—but he was keeping Gaara as far away from Itachi as possible.

With his thoughts happy about finally getting a good meeting occasion for Sasuke and Naruto, he hit speed dial for Gaara. "Hello Gaara", he purred. "I have found a way for our two friends to meet ..."

**XXX**

Gaara stood before Namikaze Minato and Kushina with an air of deference. There were days Naruto's parents acted and looked like their son so much, and this was one of such days.

After Neji's call, Gaara had immediately set an appointment to talk with Minato and Kushina. The two had been very busy but had made the time to talk with him; it definitely paid to be a close friend of the family

Naruto's parents were weird—not like he could say that considering his own personality—but they loved their son and were always willing to do anything to see him happy and with a man that would challenge him and care for him. Of course, they would probably drive Uchiha Sasuke mad but Gaara felt that was not his problem to worry about.

He was only concerned with setting the ball rolling so he could win the bet. No way was he giving a business speech to a bunch of bored know-it-all art students who would try to make the talk a living hell for him.

After he had informed Naruto's parents about the whole quiz—which they knew about because of Kiba and Naruto—and that his match was Uchiha Sasuke—which they smirked about though he didn't know the reason why—they had agreed to guilt-trip Naruto into attending the masquerade party.

When he had talked about Naruto probably recognising Sasuke's voice, they had mentioned that a friend had given them a suggestion about that. He had wondered about that, but had left since they mentioned that they would handle it all.

They then reminded him to go shopping for an appropriate mask. As he left, he wondered what the smirks had been about, but pushed it to the back of his mind. He had a party to prepare for.

**XXX**

Sasuke stared at himself in the floor length mirror. If there was anything he admired, it was a designer suit that had been custom made to suit his frame perfectly.

The suit was all black and the only different colour was the silver tie he had put on. He looked sophisticated, wealthy, classy and dangerous and that was the image he had been trying to pull off so he was pleased.

Ever since Itachi had bugged him into attending the masquerade party, he had been picking up the different parts of his attire, and had spent a long time searching for an appropriate mask to go with the look. When he had seen the black raven mask with the two tiny holes for him to see through and the hole that had been expertly cut to outline his lips, he had been sold.

Itachi had insisted on him attending the party and had mentioned that Namikaze Minato wanted to meet the both of them. The man and his family liked to hide themselves from the public glare so Sasuke had never met or seen him or his wife and his son. He therefore considered it an honour that he could now do so.

Sasuke checked the time and noticed that he would be late if he didn't move soon. He grabbed his mask and the multitude of cards that Itachi had said Minato wanted his guests to use to communicate; apparently there was to be no talking out loud at the party—the man really was eccentric—and the guests had to ensure that they could not be distinguished, which was why he had gelled his hair to fall in straight clumps the way Itachi's did—although he hated the style, he remembered that it was for a good cause as he had a man to impress and hurried out of the apartment. There was no way he was getting to the party late. It would be in bad taste to do so.

**XXX**

On the other side of town, Naruto had just finished dressing up. With a critical eye, he looked at his chosen outfit and smiled; damn he looked good.

He had decided to wear black pants with the blue shirt his mother had given him while claiming that it set off his eyes beautifully—she had been right—and a black coat. He refused to wear a suit jacket and his father knowing that he could easily change his mind about attending the party because of that had agreed.

Naruto was not usually fond of business parties, which was the reason why he rarely attended them, but his father had told him that this party was one he would enjoy. He was willing to give his father the benefit of the doubt and test to see if his claims were true.

As he glanced at the time and saw that he was running late, he grabbed his fox mask; his cards which his father had insisted he bring along so he could use to communicate with others—his father could come up with the most outlandish suggestions sometimes—and his bunch of keys before he raced out of the door and ran to his car.

He had a party to attend.

**XXX**

A/N: Temari's explanation might have been a bit convoluted, so bear with me. But all in all, I enjoyed writing this chapter.

I have started putting an active interest in livejournal and writing original stories, so I have began to post snippets of my original stories on the website. Will work on putting more up. So if you are interested, go to my profile page to find the link to my livejournal account. More snippets and extracts from my stories are on the way.

Also, I have started really using my new twitter account. So, if you would like to know about my work and how things are going and who knows give me ideas, prompts and see how things are going with me—cos you will know, since I talk a lot on twitter—,go to my profile page to get my name on twitter so you can follow me. I will be waiting.

Anyway, like I always say, I am a review whore, so shower me with reviews so I can pay you back with chapters. Ja ne.


	5. The Masquerade Party

Disclaimer: Naruto unfortunately is not mine but rather the exclusive creation of Masashi Kishimoto.

Summary: When a group of friends decide to take a personality quiz that doubles as a dating service, things get very interesting for the friends who are clearly NOT interested! SasuNaru; NejiGaara and others.

Beta'd by me, myself and I.

Author's Note: I'm so sorry that this is coming late, but I hope the chapter makes it up to you.

Babes in boyland is giving out about twenty-two books to celebrate valentine's day. If you will like to have the chance to win said books, visit my livejournal account for the link. Just search for me in live journal, as my username there is also Cassie821.

For those that would like to follow me on twitter, my twitter account is chocowithcurves, so you can add me if you want to.

Also, big thanks to those who have reviewed the story so far; you guys encourage me to keep on writing.

That said, on to the story.

**XXX**

The house was a big one; a mansion that could rival the manor house that the Uchihas had lived in before Itachi and Sasuke's parents had died and the brothers had decided to move into their own apartments so that they could get rid of the memories.

The Namikaze mansion from what he could see had at least twenty rooms from where he was standing. The house had been built with gray stones and Minato Namikaze had intelligently refused to cover up the dignified appearance of the stones set against each other with paint, thus befitting the house that looked like it had been uplifted from sixteen century France.

He was aware that the mansion could never compare to the classy one his ancestors had built, but at least it showed that his and Itachi's business partner had good taste.

Sasuke got out of his car and strode towards what he assumed was the way to the house, based on the strategic placements of the lamps that illuminated the path. Of course, the sight of others moving down said path confirmed his reasoning that the pathway he was moving towards was the right one.

When he got to the entrance to the house, he met two people—who he assumed were male because of their physique—who had on masks. Beside them were huge cards and markers with which they used to write.

One of the men wrote, _Welcome, _on one of the cards and showed the words to Sasuke who inclined his head slightly in response to the written words.

The second man then wrote on another of the cards, _Please write your initials and your mask type, as you sent to Mr Namikaze when you were invited so we can confirm who you are. Also, include details about who invited you and how it was done._

As Sasuke read the words, he mentally complained about the fact that Minato was crazy. If everyone wrote long sentences like the guards did, then it was going to be hell squinting at written words all night long.

Sasuke however reminded himself that Minato was important to their investments with the railroads. Also, the man was powerful and had contacts and businesses all over the world that both he and his brother would definitely be benefit from.

It was with those words running through his mind that Sasuke wrote his initials, his mask type and that he was invited by Minato Namikaze himself through his brother whose initials he also wrote.

The guards nodded slightly as they received his card and ran the information he had given them though the computer that was also on the table. They nodded in confirmation to the authenticity of the information on the card and waved their hands to him to enter through the oak doors, after which they turned their attention to another guest that had appeared behind him.

Sasuke pushed open the doors and walked into a room that was clearly a ballroom. There were crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling which gave muted light that would provide enough illumination for the guests to be able to read the words written on cards, while at the same time, also gave them a sort of ethereal look.

The party should have been in full swing already, but there was some sort of anticipation in the air like the occupants of the room were waiting for something to happen before the party started.

Sasuke gave a discrete glance at the watch on his wrist and barely refrained from sighing aloud. It was already thirty minutes past the hour of eight and he wondered how long he would have to wait before the party could start.

To make matters worse, he could not locate Itachi. His stupid brother who had insisted that he should not only attend the party, but should also get to the venue on time, was himself late, and was probably still at the penthouse, laughing at his younger brother's gullible nature, while fucking his boyfriend into the mattress.

Sasuke gritted his teeth and mentally vowed to show Itachi hell for tricking him. He turned around when he felt a tap on his shoulder and his eyes fell on a card that was put in front of his face,

_Ha, Sasuke, you need to wipe that look off your face. Those who don't know of your amazing ability to spend all your days living in your head and imagining all sort of things would assume that you do not want to be here, and were rather compelled to attend this party. They wouldn't know that the reason you are glaring is because you are probably having another one of your imaginary fights with me in your head._

Sasuke merely intensified the power of his glare on his annoying, busybody, irritating as hell older brother who was also dressed in a black suit and had on a weasel mask.

Itachi simply cocked his head in the way he always did whenever he felt that Sasuke was not giving his all into hating his guts. The smirk he gave confirmed that and Sasuke barely kept from snarling.

He was so distracted that he did not immediately notice that there was someone with his brother until the other man tapped Itachi on his shoulder and showed him what he had written on one of his cards which he bent slightly so Sasuke could also see what he had written.

_Hn, I think the reason why your brother is so preoccupied, yeah, is because he hasn't gotten laid in a while. You need to understand, yeah, that the only place he is getting some, is clearly in his imagination, and that is the reason why he's reluctant to join us in the real world, yeah. You need to either leave him to reside in his head, or arrange for him to get laid soon Itachi._

Sasuke reached his limit. As he moved to wrap his hands round the neck of his brother's partner in a bid to strangle him so that the idiot would finally be out of his life, Itachi caught him easily and dragged him back, all the while laughing like a fucking loon.

His laughter attracted the attention of others, and Sasuke knew that to do anything more at the moment would cause a scene, and since he wanted to impress their business partner, he pulled back, besides, he could always strangle Deidara later.

He gave the other man a glare to which Deidara merely gave him the middle finger before wrapping his arms around Itachi's neck and laying his head on Itachi's chest.

Sasuke nearly choked at the sight, especially when he considered the fact that there were in a public place and his brother was not someone who naturally showed his emotions in public. It would seem like Deidara was softening him.

At least, that was what Sasuke thought, until he saw the evil glint in Itachi's eyes and staunchly continued with his belief that his brother was evil and did not have a heart.

Itachi waved for Sasuke to follow him and together, they all walked to the front of the ballroom, where Sasuke saw a tall man wearing the mask of a frog while a slender woman stood beside him with a mask of a fox hiding her face.

With the way Itachi was striding purposefully towards them, Sasuke concluded that the people they were about to meet were the elusive Namikaze Minato and his wife. But, where was the son that Itachi had claimed that the man had, and who was also meant to be in attendance?

**XXX**

Naruto tried hard not to pant as he raced to the door. Although he had known he was going to be a little late, he had not counted on the traffic that he was going to encounter after he left his house. What the hell was everyone doing on the road at night anyway? Night was meant for sleeping and not driving about, unless the person was Uzumaki Naruto and had a party to attend.

It was already half past nine when he finally got to the door. The guards didn't bother asking him any questions as he was well known for dashing into the house whenever he was late for a party; it was a constant for him. They all smirked at him as he finally slowed down when he had entered the ballroom.

He walked casually—the way his father had told him to do whenever he was late, and didn't want others to see him rattled; apparently, the rich could afford to be fashionably late sometimes, especially when they were the ones throwing the party—as he strolled to the dais he saw his parents and three men standing.

As he got there, he whipped out a card and hurriedly scribbled his apology on one.

_I'm so sorry I'm late. There was so much traffic on the road, and it took me longer than I had initially planned to get here._

His parents smiled, with his father patting him on the shoulder reassuringly, while the three masked men inclined their heads graciously like they were royalty or something.

He immediately smothered the snigger that threatened to come out at the thought. His mother would love for him to learn some acts of graciousness from the men, while his father would laugh at the suggestion and get a blow to the head for daring to contradict Kushina by laughing.

Even as Naruto considered the scene and smiled fondly at the thought, his father was striding forward to the very edge of the dais.

As he did so, a hush fell over the crowd as they realised that their host was about to communicate with them.

Naruto though, wondered idly how his father intended to communicate with the entire crowd at the same time, since they all wouldn't be able to see the writings on the card he held.

He needn't have bothered as guards all over the room, yanked off the cloth that covered the projector screens that were scattered all over the room and which suddenly began to show previously written words by Minato.

_Welcome everyone to my masquerade party. I am glad that you all got here safely. Now, the whole point of the party is intermingling with a little bit of manipulation on my side of course. If you don't like it, well that's your problem because it's my party and I call all the shots. Other than that, drink, dance, make merry till twelve midnight._

If Naruto had been sitting at a desk when the words appeared, he would have attempted killing himself by hitting his head on the desk in order to escape his father's stupidity. He was not close to a wall either, so he could not hit his head against that. All he could settle for was to seethe silently at the embarrassment.

He wondered if maybe he would have preferred the boring business parties to this one. At least, his father acted like the respected businessman he was at those parties. Now, he behaved like someone who was drunk.

Naruto immediately tried sniffing subtly around his father but could not smell alcohol on him. Besides, his mother would have easily stopped Minato from doing something stupid like drinking an excessive amount of alcohol before the party, which meant that his father was not drunk.

After the words had faded from the screen, the crowd applauded—which confirmed Naruto's suspicions that they were not the respectable and stoic business associates of his father—and one of the masked men stiffened slightly, but said nothing; thus confirming that they were the business associates.

Naruto felt that Mr Manners probably did not want to say anything that would be insulting to his host, and at the thought, he smiled slightly.

Minato took one of his cards, wrote some words and showed the card to Naruto and to the masked man who had stiffened at the sight of his words on the screen.

_I want everyone at the party paired off, and you two are the only unattached ones at this dais. So, stay together until the end of the party and I do not want the two of you separating for any reason whatsoever._

Naruto was used to his father's idiosyncrasies, and shrugged in agreement. From the corner of his eyes, he saw the masked man's eyes widen slightly, and he moved slightly. But, he was stopped by the taller masked man, with hair the same black shade as the other man's who gave the second masked man who had obviously wanted to object a little nudge.

At the nudge, the other man nodded, and extended an arm to Naruto, which he took, and the two of them left the dais with Naruto wondering about what the whole exchange had been about.

**XXX**

Minato, Kushina, Itachi and Deidara watched Sasuke lead Naruto away, and all four of them smiled, although Itachi's smile was more of a smirk than a smile. They were all pleased that things seemed to be going just as they had planned for them to go.

Itachi though, remembered that he was still meant to meet Neji and his 'friend' and he was certain that Neji would try to keep this 'friend' of his, far away from him, which just wouldn't do.

He had learnt to read the nuances in voices from his father and he had caught the barely contained excitement in Neji's voice when he had spoken that his 'friend' was someone who would be able to convince Naruto to attend the party.

Considering the fact that the man was Naruto's friend, he had figured that the man would be someone Naruto's parents would know and had asked them when they had met about the arrangements concerning the party.

Minato had told him that the friend was someone called Gaara who was as antisocial as Naruto was extroverted, but who loved his friends with an intensity that would make the common man wary; the love was only equalled by the jealous way he guarded his friends.

Further snooping had revealed to him—via Temari of course—that Neji was interested in the reclusive Gaara who Temari was certain, would not give him the light of day.

Of course, he had not taken Temari's words at face value, because he could sense the over protectiveness in her voice, and he knew that she would want her younger brother to not be interested in Neji.

The hawk-like presence of an overbearing sister, and the sadistic and stubborn behaviour of Gaara which he had figured was similar to that of Sasori; an acquaintance of his, was sure to be a delight and torture for Neji whom he had sort of adopted as his younger brother.

He would treat him like he would treat Sasuke, and with those thoughts in his head he turned to greet Gaara who had finally made it to the party with a racoon mask on his face, while motioning to Deidara to go and get Neji.

The two men needed to be together now, and be forced to stay together for the rest of the party; like Sasuke and Naruto had been commanded to do, for his plans to work.

He barely kept himself from cackling in delight at the thought. There was no reason for Neji and Sasuke to suspect from his actions what he was planning. If they got a whiff on what he was planning for them, they would be very wary and would begin to tread cautiously, and he could not have that.

**XXX**

After a while of aimless wandering into dead ends and into rooms containing couples who had clearly had more to drink than they should have, Sasuke accepted that the man with the fox mask was probably right in suggesting that he should be the one to lead them around. It was his house after all, and Sasuke fully expected the other man to know exactly where he was going.

Eventually, the fox—which was the name Sasuke had decided to call Minato's son in his head, since he didn't know the man's name and could not keep calling him 'the man' in his head—led them to one of the balconies of the mansion.

The only thing that separated the balcony from the rest of the house was a flimsy curtain which served to give them just a little bit of privacy, especially with the fact that they were the only ones in the place.

The fox leaned forward, braced over the railings, took in a deep breath and smiled. Sasuke noticed two things immediately. The first was that the way the man moved was very familiar, although he couldn't exactly place where it was that they could have met before. The second thing he noticed was that the fox had a smile that seemed to light up his face, especially the pretty blue eyes—which also looked strangely familiar—that was visible through the slits that had been cut out of the mask like his had been.

Rather than dwell on that though, Sasuke concentrated on making conversation with the fox. Minato had instructed it and although he had been about to object to the arrangement, the little nudge from Itachi had reminded him of the reason why he had accepted the invitation to the party in the first place—it was to form a working relationship with Minato, which he would not have been able to accomplish if he had objected to the request made by the man himself.

He hoped though, that his partner for the night would be witty enough to keep him from being completely bored.

They started the conversation slowly; talking about the upcoming sword fighting games that was to hold in Konoha. Sasuke was pleased to note that both he and the fox believed that the brown-haired Tenten would win the competition. The woman was a master at weapons and they both pitied the people who would be unfortunate enough to be her opponents in the competition.

After talking about the competition, they moved on to talking about politics in Konoha and the elections that were to hold the following year.

The fox mentioned that he believed that Sarutobi would win the elections, not just because he was a close friend of the family; but because he had already spent a tenure ruling Konoha, and the citizens were all happy with his administration. Konoha was thriving; the economy was growing strong; the defence of the country was strong; they had the best medics in the whole continent; their educational system and its success at churning out graduates who were knowledgeable and capable of handling whatever situation they found themselves in later in life, were envied by other countries; and best of all, the peace and security that the people of Konoha enjoyed. These were all benefits from Sarutobi's administration and the fox was convinced that Danzo's plea for a greater Konoha with more renown than it already had, in terms of military strength, would turn the people away from him, as Danzo merely promised glory that would be gotten from bloodshed, which was not what the people of Konoha wanted from their next ruler.

His defence was strong and logically presented and Sasuke could not find any faults with it. The fox was clearly passionate and spoke with facts which he used to back up his points.

The man was clearly intelligent and Sasuke was happy that he had not ended up with a stupid partner.

They then began to talk about the railroads and the impact it would have on both the country and their businesses.

Again, the fox surprised him with his insight—even though Sasuke kept wondering why he was still getting surprised at the stage they had gotten to, since the other man had already proven how intelligent he was—as he mentioned that the railroad was an investment he had convinced his father to partake out of.

Although for the time being, they were only interested in repairing the railroads, which was the contract their company had been given; they however planned to make an offer to invest in the finished railroads, so they could always get their own share of the profits whenever the citizens of Konoha boarded the trains, and considering the fact that they were the ones who actually repaired the railroads, the shares would be sold to them at smaller prices, compared to the prices other investors would have to pay.

Sasuke noticed that not only did the man have a good head for business, but he was also as cunning and tricky as his father. The information the fox had given him was one that could easily mislead a stupid associate who was not cautious. He had conveniently not mentioned how they were going to purchase the shares exactly, and the percentage of the shares that they were going to purchase.

A less cautious man would have jumped at the information given and would have begun to immediately buy all the shares he could, all the while exclaiming about Minato's interest in the soon to be functioning railroad business and how he knows that it would soon start bringing in abnormal profits. He would not know that the best plan to carry out would be to start buying small. It would take more than a couple of years before the railroads would once again begin to flourish, and those who rush in would eventually want to leave after they notice that they have not yet started to gain any profits from the business. The point when those who entered early begin to leave is to best time to start buying the shares in large quantities as the ignorant ones would want to quickly make their money and would sell their shares at an even lower value. By the time the deed would have been done and the investors would start to rake in their abnormal profits, the silly ones who rushed in early and rushed out even faster than they had gone in, would realise their mistake, and it would already be too late.

Sasuke recognised the fox's attempt to test him and find out if he could think well, or if he was just following his brother's reasoning blindly, without questioning him.

After Sasuke had replied that he would wait for a while, buy some shares and increase the number steadily over the years, he saw a glimmer of respect shine in the fox's eyes and knew that he had passed the test.

They moved on to more topics, mentioning music, movies, animes, mangas, books and cars. They laughed at each other's jokes, and sometimes when Sasuke would casually brush his hands against the fox's he saw the flash of awareness in the other's eyes and smiled at the sight.

He was considering how he should ask the fox out on a date when the clocks placed all over the house began to chime merrily, informing all who were listening that it was already twelve.

Sasuke was very surprised at the time, as he did not know that hours had gone by so quickly for them while they had been discussing.

Both he and the fox moved side by side as they walked towards the dais. Minato was vibrating with excitement, and after they had settled on the dais, the projector screens came alive again.

_You all made it to twelve midnight, and I am very pleased about that. In keeping with the theme I had in mind for this party—some of you would have guessed already with the masks and the magical feel anonymity had powerfully given the night—, since it is now midnight, it is time for the midnight kiss. Since all of us, myself included, have partners, at least for this night, I want you all to turn to your partners and give them a kiss worthy of the magic of the night._

Sasuke shook his head slightly as he confirmed to himself that Minato Namikaze was indeed mad. However, he saw no reason to object, and with the way the fox's lips had parted slightly, he too had no objections to the suggestion.

The hands Sasuke raised and placed on the face of the fox—even though technically, it was the mask he was touching—was gentle and he carefully placed his lips on soft ones.

It was a bit tricky and uncomfortable at first, because of the mask and the fact that the hole that had been cut for the fox's mouth was just small enough to fit the lips, but Sasuke managed it.

With gentle motions, he ran his tongue lightly over the fox's bottom lip and swept in when he the mouth opened slightly.

The kiss was not as thorough as he would have liked—since what he actually wanted to do, was to feast on the mouth all day long—but Sasuke got a good taste of the fox's mouth which tasted very spicy—making him wonder what it was that the fox had eaten before coming to the party—, which convinced him that they needed to do it again, sometime soon, without any masks interfering.

From the dilated pupils of his partner, and the way he kept licking his lips like he was trying to savour the taste of the kiss, the fox agreed with him, and they both spent a moment staring at each other.

The moment was broken by Minato clapping. After he was done, the projector screen that had gone blank, once again came to live as word appeared on the screen.

_Bravo! I am a diehard romantic and you all just gave me an amazing show. The next step of my romance masquerade party, which is what I am calling this party, is for the partners, and I know each and every one of you, to go on at least three dates. You are to have a date a week and all dates must be completed before the end of a month; otherwise, the affected partners would see hell. You are allowed to choose the venue and time for your dates, and trust me when I say that I have my way of knowing whether you actually went on the date or not. There would be a slight modification to this rule for the couples that I personally paired. Will the second set of the paired couples please come to the dais?_

At the words, the screen again went blank. Sasuke vaguely wondered about what exactly was going on, but decided to not say anything, especially when he noticed the man wearing the mask of the twins. Only Neji wore that emblem and Sasuke wondered how Minato knew Neji and why Neji had never mentioned that he knew Minato.

Neji was followed by another man, who had on a racoon mask. Sasuke also wondered why the man's gait looked familiar, but no reason came to mind for him, so he decided to push it to the back of his mind, to ruminate on later.

After Minato saw that his second set of paired couples had gotten to the dais, he smiled, and again the screens blinked to life.

The next words were simple and straight to the point.

_Take off your masks people; introduce yourself to your partner if you need to; exchange essential details if needed and call it a night. This party had been a success and I hope there are many more like it to come._

At those words, there was cheering all around as people yanked off their masks, embraced each other and began to talk about the party, even as they left.

Sasuke took his time taking off his mask, and he saw that the fox did the same. Eventually, they both had their masks off, waved off the hair strands that blocked their vision and stared in shock at each other.

Sasuke could feel the astonishment and horror coursing through his body as he realised that the man he had conversed with, laughed with, and oh fuck, kissed, was the same brat from the spa and the personality quiz, and now he had to go on dates with the man.

He considered for a moment, refusing the offer, but he once again remembered his reason for attending the party in the first place and the fact that it was not only his investments that were on the line, but Itachi's as well. He could not just work away, and from the resigned look on the fox's—no Naruto's—face, the other man had come to a similar conclusion and could not back out of the arrangement, for reasons that were unknown to him.

With a nod at Minato and a gracious bow over Kushina Namikaze's outstretched hand, Sasuke walked out of the house.

He trusted Itachi to get him the needed details, and he knew that his brother would do so, amidst a lot of taunting. It was just a part of who he was.

There was no way in hell though, that he was staying there to talk with Naruto. He needed a stiff drink and he needed it immediately.

**XXX**

Naruto watched Sasuke leave with the growing dismay he had began to feel after he had taken off the mask. He could not believe the coincidence that the man he had spoken with as an equal; who had kissed him so well—masks and all—was the jerk from the spa that he had been paired off with because of the quiz.

He could have objected seeing Sasuke again, but he knew that his doing so would put his father on the spot, especially considering that it was his father that had paired them up for the party. Also, Sasuke had already agreed with the arrangement.

To back out of it would make his father have to take back his words about the arrangement which would make others question the dating rule and why Minato's son had to be an exception, and that would ruin the moment for Minato.

Naruto loved his father and he knew that he couldn't do that to him. Besides, he was not a coward and he would not run away from this. Anyway, it was just three dates and he wouldn't need to continue seeing Sasuke after that.

With those determined words echoing in his head, Naruto left, although he did wonder absently why Gaara looked so livid as he glared at the man Naruto recognised as being Hyuuga Neji.

Naruto left without looking back. If he had, he would have seen the triumphant looks his parents exchanged with the other man that looked like the older version of Sasuke and his blond haired companion.

**XXX**

Author's Note: Another chapter done. Tell me how well I did you guys and if you would be willing to attend a masquerade party like the one I mentioned if you had the opportunity to do so.

Remember the babes in boyland offer people, and I hope you do not let the opportunity pass you by.

Well, like I always say, I'm a review whore and I demand that my payment should be reviews, so let 'em rip.

Till I put up another chapter—have some NejiGaara and SasuNaru oneshots up already—, Ja ne.


	6. First Dates

Disclaimer: Naruto unfortunately is not mine but rather the exclusive creation of Masashi Kishimoto.

Summary: When a group of friends decide to take a personality quiz that doubles as a dating service, things get very interesting for the friends who are clearly NOT interested! SasuNaru; NejiGaara and others.

Beta'd by me, myself and I. So, sorry for the errors. I have a feeling that there will be tons of them.

Author's Note: So, it has been about four months since I last updated. I'm so sorry everyone. It's been a very busy last couple of months for me. I had to get a place to do my N.Y.S.C programme (for those interested, just Google it. You'll see all you need to know about the programme). I'm teaching high schoolers till February of next year, by which time, I hope to have gotten a job (keep your fingers crossed for me, you guys). I had to relocate to a new city, and it has been hell settling down. But, I've settled down a bit, so I'm happy about that.

I just had an original story I wrote (it's M/M of course) get accepted by a publishing outfit. I'm so excited. For those who would like to know how things are going with my writing and my life, follow me on twitter; username is chocowithcurves. Will follow you as well, so we can DM and chat. Anyway, hang around, especially on twitter, as I have a feeling that I will be doing a free giveaway of the novel as soon as it is released. So keep your fingers crossed, and come look for me on twitter.

Check out my LJ account as well. Username is Cassie821. I have a free read I wrote about Medusa's offspring who is cursed like his mother, and this affects his two lovers. It's fun and full of smex, that I know you all will enjoy. So, just click on the link to view the story. It will lead you to a group. When asked how you came to know of the group or who invited you, just tell them Alessandra Ebulu did.

Well, that's all for all the rambling. On to the story.

**XXX**

A gasp. The body beneath him shuddered, just the way he liked it. He felt his lips curve in a smirk and rubbed his jaw against the figure's collarbone. A flicker of his tongue resulted in another gasp, and Sasuke ran his tongue slowly downwards until he got to dusty pink nipples. He curved his tongue around the right nipple and gave it a hard tug; just the way he knew the person beneath him liked it. That earned him a groan, and a hard poke from a cock that clearly felt neglected and was hard and ready for his mouth. He didn't see why he had to hurry though. They had enough time.

Of course, it would have been better if he could see the face of the person he was about to fuck, but the room was dark, and the only senses he could use at the moment, to get his bearings were his sense of touch, he ran his fingers down the hard ridge of his lover's abdomen; his sense of smell, and he could definitely smell the muskiness of the man's sweat and precum; his sense of hearing, for he could hear the deep breath they both inhaled, and the moans and groans that punctuated the sex or rather the prelude to actual fucking, and finally his sense of taste. Sasuke felt his skin prickle in delight as he finally got to his lover's cock, and wrapped his tongue slowly over the head. The figure immediately raised his hip off the bed and released a howl. Sasuke though was not willing to let go of his treat and he was certain the man didn't want him to either.

He raised firm hands to hold on to the moving hips and swallowed the man's cock, taking his time to pause intermittently, until the head of the man's cock was lodged at the back of his throat. With that done, he paused and waited for a while.

As he had expected, the man mewled and wiggled. Sasuke smiled again, moved his hands to the open bottle of lube he had ensured was beside him on the bed, and dipped two fingers inside it, lifted the man's leg and slid his now slick fingers slowly, over the back of his thighs, enjoying the sounds his lover was making as his finger approached the hole his dick was aching to be buried deep inside. Damn! He was a good lover, if he could say so himself. Finally, his fingers reached the man's ass, and Sasuke slid two slick fingers into the hole that immediately gripped his fingers hard, and had his lover cry out, "Fuck me already, Sasuke".

Sasuke's head immediately snapped up. He recognised that voice. God, did he recognise the voice. Immediately, just as if it had all been planned, the lights came on, and he could see Uzumaki Naruto with his hands holding so tightly to the headboard, Sasuke was sure there would be scratches on the oak piece, and blue eyes staring intently at him. Swollen lips repeated the command, "Fuck me already, Sasuke", and Sasuke woke up, with his breath coming hard and fast and his hands clutching his duvet tightly.

Shit! That was the third night in a row that he had dreamt that same dream. Ever since the masquerade party, he had been dreaming of that idiotic blonde. What the hell was the matter with him? Fuck!

One would have thought that he had never kissed a man before. Why the hell couldn't he get the stupid blonde and his mouth, tanned skin, blue eyes, blonde hair and soft lips out of his head?

Just as the question crossed his mind, a voice in his head reminded him of the conversation he and Naruto had engaged in, at the party. Uzumaki had easily revealed with his words that he was quite knowledgeable and intelligent. Calling him stupid was therefore very redundant. Sasuke immediately wished he could see the voice in his head, so he could glare the annoying voice to death.

He was not interested in listening to any voice of reason, thank you very much. Besides, he was certain that the intelligence the blonde had exhibited had to be a fluke. At that thought, Sasuke smirked.

He climbed out of his bed, and slid his feet into his slippers. There was now a way for him to confirm that what happened at the party had to be an accident, an aberration that he would be able to prove. All he had to do was to attend the stupid dates, and soon enough, especially since the blonde now realised who is date would be, Naruto would not be able to control himself and his stupidity and his boring nature would be revealed. Sasuke fairly cackled at his brilliance. That is, until he glanced at the clock by the side of the bed, and realised that he only had about thirty minutes to get ready for his class.

_Shit! That would mean no exercise for me this morning. That is the reason why associating with and dreaming of that stupid blonde is sure to put me in trouble. Even with him not here, he still messes up my routine!_

**XXX**

Naruto turned the key in the lock, and turned the knob, letting himself into his apartment. His hands flicked the switch on, and light flooded the place. His knapsack landed on the floor with a thud and he bent to remove his shoes, his socks and his shirt, leaving a trail of footwear and clothing pieces as he made his way to the kitchen. He needed a cold drink and some food, and he needed them by yesterday. Damn Iruka Sensei! What was his business and fascination with the stupid revolution carried out by the French? That was all they had been discussing about in class for over six weeks now. As far as Naruto was concerned, the French should have been more organised. If they had really wanted to change the fate of their country, then they should have been certain that Louis XIV would be replaced by someone better. Instead, they replaced Monarchy with Autocracy and got Napoleon Bonaparte instead. Of course, the man helped raise the country, and restore onto it, its former glory. Naruto knew that he could not argue with that. However, what Napoleon was still went against what the French people had battled for.

As Naruto gulped down the contents of his soda drink, and ran his hands over his mouth to get rid of the residue, a light went on in his head. He did a whoop and some ass shaking, as it occurred to him that he had finally figured out his answer to Iruka Sensei's latest assignment. Now, all he had to do was to remember all he had just thought, and put them down on his laptop. The paper smelt like an A.

The whistle that was on Naruto's lips died as he turned around and noticed that his answering machine was blinking red.

_Hmmn. I wonder who called. Usually, my friends and parents simply call me on my cell._

With a shrug of his shoulders, he strolled to the machine and pushed the play back button. Immediately, Naruto heard laughter that had the hairs at the back of his neck prickle. Kyuubi's voice flooded the room. "Hello cousin dearest. It's been a while. Did you miss me?"

_No, I most certainly did not. In fact, I don't think I have had as much peace, as he I have had since you moved to Suna. _Naruto thought, as he crossed his arms.

"Anyway, I'm calling to inform you that I will be in Konoha in a few days. I called uncle Minato, and imagine my surprise when he told me that you still haven't fallen in love, nor gotten someone to fuck your brains out." The message stopped for a while as Kyuubi guffawed and Naruto felt his face flush.

"Of course uncle didn't put it that way exactly. But, you know how I like to paraphrase. Anyway, he said you don't go out very much, and that is something that worries me greatly. So, I have decided to fix that problem, and what better way to help you out than to have you meet my friends, new and old, and the acquaintances I have made since I left Konoha, and the few ones that are still in Konoha of course. I am sure you will be able to choose one of them as your boyfriend. I will be in Konoha for a month, and I can guarantee it that you will have a date every night until I leave. So, see you soon cousin".

The message ended with a click, while Naruto stared with horror at the machine. Hell no! There was no way in hell he was going out on any dates with Kyuubi's friends. Not even for all the ramen in the world. At that thought, Naruto paused. Okay, maybe he might consider a date or two for ramen.

_No! What the hell am I thinking? No dating of Kyuubi's friends. Ever. _

They were all weird. Saimon had a thing for licking Naruto anytime he was close to him. Naruto shuddered at the memory. Yuck! And then, there was Yogi. The idiot that was convinced that Naruto would date him if he ever succeeded in feeding Naruto love potions. Not that Naruto would touch anything the creep made with a ten foot pole. Then there was Rei. Pretty boy Rei, with his pretty manners and amazing body. Naruto had even fancied himself half in love with him. Until he had paid and unannounced visit, and found Rei with a cow's intestines around his neck and wrist, paying homage to a miniature carving of a cow in the middle of Rei's living room. Naruto had run like the hounds of hell were chasing him, to the sound of Rei shouting, "Come back here you heathen, and pay homage to the great cow".

That had been a narrow escape. Kyuubi's friends were definitely as crazy as Kyuubi himself; some worse than the others. There was no way he was setting himself up to that torture.

_It looks like I will be stuck with Sasuke until the month ends and Kyuubi leaves. Besides, the devil one knows is better than the unknown angel anyway._

If Naruto had possessed any powers or psychic abilities, he would have been witness to Kyuubi calling Minato to inform him that he had played his own part. Naruto would also have heard the two of them laughing.

**XXX**

He sensed the presence behind him, long before he reached the door to his apartment. His hands were steady as he dipped them into his pockets, took out his bunch of keys and raised them to the door. Just as the keys got close to the key hole, he swiftly turned around, and the key slashed through the air, aimed at the person behind him, only for the older man to bend backwards; effectively causing the key to miss its target.

A tsking sound was heard before, "You're getting very sloppy little brother", could be heard. Itachi crossed his arms with a smug look on his face.

"Itachi, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Sasuke hissed, as brought his bunch of keys back to himself and curled his fingers around it.

_Damn Itachi! What the hell is wrong with him anyway? Doesn't he know how creepy what he had just done is?_

Sasuke had sensed that someone had been following him since he left the school, but he had been bidding his time, waiting until he got to his own turf, before he attacked. Trust that it was annoying brother that had been stalking him. Why didn't the bastard just remain at home with his boyfriend anyway?

"I merely needed to talk with you, Sasuke".

"And you couldn't call like a normal person?" Sasuke asked, and opened his door, to let himself and Itachi in.

"What? And miss your sloppy defence skills and the look on your face as I hand you this? Not on your life", Itachi said, as he waved some paperwork in Sasuke's face.

"What the hell is that?"

"Your reservations for your first date of course little brother. What else could it be? I accessed your account on the website. By the way, you need to come up with another password other than our mother's name. You make it too easy to hack into your account. Anyway, your first date, according to the website, should be at the Akimichi's arcade at seven sharp. Do not be late". And with those words, Itachi gave a wink and left the apartment.

The door shut behind him with a click. Sasuke sighed a she walked to the table Itachi had tossed the papers on. It looked like he had a date for Saturday then, and there was no way he could get out of it.

His phone vibrated briefly, and Sasuke pulled it out of his pocket, and flipped it open. An instant message from Neji flashed across the screen.

_Hey. Where are you?_

Sasuke's hands moved quickly as he typed in his reply. _I'm at home. Just received a visit from Itachi about my date for Saturday._

_Hmmn. He dropped my reservations when he saw me at the university. It would seem like Gaara and I's first date would be at an amusement park, followed by a night at the club. Will see you Monday._ Neji replied, and sighed off.

Sasuke closed his phone with a snap and walked to the bar. He needed a drink badly. As he sipped his sake, he wondered how Naruto would be getting his own copy of the reservations.

**XXX**

"I really wish I could go on the date with you..." Naruto barely refrained from scratching his head, as he mentally went through the list of names in his memory, trying to remember the name of Kyuubi's purple haired friend, who had a thing for constantly licking his lips and shuffling his feet. Ha! He remembered. "...Hana. But, I can't. You see, I'm sort of seeing someone at the moment, and I even have a date with him this Saturday".

"And why don't I believe you? But even if you are seeing someone, you can still go out on a date with me as well, on Sunday maybe. I am sure I will be able to make you change your mind".

_No way in hell. Sasuke might be a bastard, but at least he is easy to look at, more intelligent, and has confidence dripping from his pores. Why the hell will I choose a pathetic, not so good looking wimp like you over him?_

"I'm sorry Hana. But you see, my parents have already met him, and they not only accepted him, but they like him as well. So, it is that serious already".

Hana looked crestfallen for a little while, but just as he brightened up and was about to probably make another comment about how he was the right man for Naruto, the door opened to let in Kushina who waved some papers above her head. "So, here's the reservations for your date with Sasuke. You are to meet at Akimichi's arcade, and the night should progress from there. Your date starts at seven, so ensure that you are not late".

"What sort of person sets a man up on a date instead of allowing him to choose his partner for himself", Hana jumped in with his chest puffed out, before Naruto could give a reply to his mother's words.

Kushina turned narrowed eyes to Hana before asking, "And who the hell are you?"

Hana flinched slightly before pulling himself up and declaring loudly, "I am the man who would soon become Naruto's boyfriend. Who are you?"

"I am his mother, little one. And I will suggest you make yourself scarce. At least, until you grow some backbone".

Naruto had to suppress the snicker that almost escaped at the terrified look Hana gave Kushina before bolting out the door.

"Did you really have to do that mother?" Naruto asked as he collected the papers from Kushina.

"Of course. It's fun." Kushina said.

With a laugh and a wave, she was gone and Naruto had to shake his head. His mother was definitely crazy.

**XXX**

The night had flown by. They had met at the park, and after the initial hesitation, Gaara had thawed slightly, and they had moved to the Ferris wheel. Although, considering that his date barely said full sentences, Neji guessed that his thinking that Gaara had thawed at all, was a bit of a stretch. The redhead was probably still pissed at him about the kiss at the party. Although whether Gaara was pissed because Neji had kissed him, or because Neji had kissed someone in a raccoon mask, who might not have been Gaara, Neji had no idea. All he knew was that Gaara had been spitting mad after the masks had been removed. So, Gaara's almost silence was definitely better than he not showing up for the date at all, or leaving immediately after he put in an appearance. So, Neji was counting his blessings.

The date at the park though had helped him to discover something important. Gaara loved the Ferris wheel, car races and possessed a sweet tooth. The redhead also loved to torture him. Neji had spent the entire time at the amusement park trying to adjust his swollen cock, so he could move about more easily, and would not terrify anyone that came within a ten mile radius with a hard cock that kept pointing at the delectable ass that Gaara, the minx, kept shaking in front of him.

Now, they were at the club, and that gorgeous ass was right in front of his cock; grinding, taunt and so damn perfect. Gaara did a particular wiggle that had Neji moaning and bringing Gaara's ass even closer to his aching cock. Of course, at that particular moment, Gaara spun around, did a glide down Neji's body that ended with Gaara's equally hard cock brushing Neji's dick briefly.

Neji bit his lower lip, and just when he was about to start the grinding and humping session, Gaara pulled back to whisper in his ear. "Need a drink and a smoke", and then walked away.

Neji stared at the ass, with his breath coming out in little pants. Damn! This was going to be one long night.

**XXX**

Sasuke leaned against the juke box that was at the moment playing a classic from five years before; a song titled Aioi, by a singer he had forgotten. Although the reason why he remembered the title of the song, and not the artist who sang it, he had no idea.

He tucked his hands deep into the pockets of his pants as his eyes scanned the crowd for his date. It was about two minutes past seven, and he briefly wondered if maybe Uzumaki Naruto not show up for the date. Why that caused his chest to tighten briefly, he had no idea. He shuffled his feet and changed his leaning position against the juke box.

Suddenly, there was static in his ear, and he could hear Itachi's voice clearly, through the ear piece he had in his ear. "Stop shuffling about. You look suspicious. Lighten up, and do not scare the boy away."

"I don't think you know anything about lightening up Itachi. Besides, I do not think Uzumaki will take kindly to being called a boy." Sasuke responded immediately.

"I know tons of stuff about lightening up. It always gives me a relief to release all the tension. Ask Deidara. He will tell you that I'm always much lighter after a good session."

Sasuke choked on his saliva as Itachi's words ran through his mind. _Shit! I definitely did not need that particular image. Damn Itachi!_

"Shut up, Itachi."

"I wish I could little brother. However, it gives me great joy to know that I will be a witness to your date with Naruto, and I can also be a buzzing sound in your ear. Now remember, be less hostile. Will check up with you later. Deidara is calling."

And with those words, there was blessed relief. Sasuke released a sigh at the silence, and his chest felt lighted as he spotted a familiar blonde making his way towards him.

Naruto had on a grey sweater over black, obviously well worn jeans, and a pair of white sneakers. His outfit suited him perfectly.

"So, Sasuke."

"Hmmn."

He watched the blue eyes narrow slightly as Naruto responded, "I don't know you well enough to understand your 'hmmn'. So, can we please stick to words and forms of expression that we both can understand?"

Sasuke inclined his head. "Fair enough".

"So, what do you think we should do? I don't think standing here awkwardly will count as a date", Naruto said after the silence had stretched for a while.

Sasuke turned to look at him, as he asked. "So, what do you suggest we do?"

"Well, from the papers we got, we have to spend two hours here. Right?"

Sasuke nodded, wondering what Uzumaki was getting at.

"Well then, do you play video games?"

Another nod from Sasuke was the reply Naruto got. "Good. Let's go to the video game section, where I shall proceed to kick your butt at street fighter."

"Child. I have been playing that game since before you were born. If there is anyone whose ass will be kicked..." this was followed by a glance to said butt, and a smile, "...it will be yours", Sasuke concluded.

Naruto gave a slight huff as he replied. "That's easy for you to say. The question is, can you put your money where your mouth is? Lets' have a bet. The loser pays for tonight's date".

Sasuke's smirk widened as he nodded. Together, the blonde and his raven haired date walked to where the video games were located.

**XXX**

Naruto glanced at his date. It was amazing the level of concentration Sasuke was giving to the orchestral performance that was written and led by Yuki Mizotari. The music was indeed haunting and beautiful, but Naruto would have assumed that someone like Sasuke would consider such a thing trifling and too emotional for a man.

For someone so stoic, Sasuke seemed really involved in the performance. He never even took his eyes off the stage. Naruto shook his head slightly with a smile. It would seem that his promise to be cordial and even friendly to Sasuke had paid off.

Of course, he had made that promise in the hopes that he would be able to get Sasuke to continue to appear for their dates. Now, it looked like there would be an added advantage to that.

Sasuke reached out hid hand to grab some popcorn from the bucket, and their hands brushed. He turned to look at Naruto who gave a smile to which Sasuke gave a brief nod, before turning his attention back to the performance. Naruto leaned back in his seat. The date had turned out not to be a bad thing after all.

As he and Sasuke strolled out to their cars, Naruto thought of the night's events. It had turned out to be better than he had expected, which was definitely a good thing. He got to his car first and unlocked the doors. As he slid into the seat, Sasuke rested his fingers against the door. "Good night dumbass. And thanks for being so generous as to pay for the date".

Naruto snickered. "Good night bastard. And who knows, you might just pay for the next date."

All he got was a smirk, as Sasuke walked away, with his hands buried in the pockets of his pants.

**XXX**

Author's Note: So, there you have it. So, sorry the chapter is so short. Will try and do better next time. Kay.

Well, then read and review and let me know what you think. Ja ne.


End file.
